Because now I know- All my roads lead to you
by Anzu Brief
Summary: Naruto had wanted to create his own path, very different from the one that Kurama had shown him –married to a girl he didn't love and trapped in a job he hated– and to give Sasuke a true chance at happiness. Traveling back to the past was the first step. Now Sasuke and he must locate Itachi and together, the three of them, embrace a new path full of danger, discoveries, and love.
1. Chapter 1

_This is a time-travel story in which both, Sasuke and Naruto travel to the past together. There is plot in this story, but it will be mostly focus on feelings, relationships, and characters' development instead of action. I hope you enjoy it!_

 _PS: Naruto doesn't belong to me. I'd cut my veins before writing that horrible ending!_

 _PS2: I'm editing this story. Bubbusaja has offered to beta the first four chapters for me, while I and my other betas are still working in the next chapter. She has done a wonderful job, and she worked so fast! I don't know how to thank her. Chapter 1-3 are edited now. I'm also gointo to change a little bit the structure of a couple of chapters that I think fit better together._

 _ **PS3: Deamiel has agreed to beta this story again from the beggining.** She (I do hope it's a she, I'll have to ask her next time I PM her) is a marvel. I'm going to start my Master next year, and she is done a fantastic job in finding all those little mistakes that scape me, and that will probaly lower my grades from an A to a B. So Thank You So Much for your help, and I hope you can keep helping me in the future._

 _I hope, from now on, everybody can read this story without been distracted by all the mistakes I make. Thank you for your amazing help, Babbusaja._

* * *

 **Chapter 1.**

 _Land of Waves. Team 7, S-rank mission._

Kakashi watched over the two sleeping bodies of his students with worry. The battle on the bridge had taken a deep toll on both of them, deeper than he had expected. Nobody could deny that the mission had been a success. Gatō was killed by his employee's own hands, and in the process so were Haku and Zabuza, though Kakashi was having a hard time trying to feel any sort of joy or relief on the account of their deaths.

However, Kakashi was a ninja. He knew that there was always a heavy price to pay for peace and he was intimately familiar with the sorrow of loss. The death of those two, as regrettable as it was, was still an acceptable payment for a greater goal. There were no more obstacles left to prevent Tazuna from building his bridge and The Land of Waves would soon walk into a new era of prosperity as a result.

And yet, despite of that, it was difficult to feel victorious at all. It seemed like Kakashi still was, despite his best efforts, a sentimental fool. And all this success would matter little to him unless his two most promising students woke up soon.

"Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi turned his only visible eye to look at his third student. She was his responsibility too, this shinobi girl, who was not more than a child in all the ways her teammates were not: innocent and untouched by loss.

"They will wake up soon", he lied to her smoothly.

In truth, he had no idea if they would wake up. By all accounts, they should be awake already. "That's what you said yesterday. And the day before." Sakura's voice was weak and tired, barely a whisper. The girl was seconds away from crying.

Kakashi clenched his fists for a second and then forced himself to relax. This wasn't Sakura's fault. If anything, it was his fault. He was the one who decided to take the mission and brought his pupils along despite knowing the risk of going against a class A criminal, let alone two. Sakura was their teammate, and she was obviously very shaken and dead with worry about them.

"Chakra exhaustion is different for everybody. And this was Naruto and Sasuke's first real battle. Their bodies need time to rest and recuperate, that's all," he explained, trying to be reassuring. He tried not to think it was his sensei's son laying in that bed, cold and still. Tried not to think about Minato at all.

"Come on." He put a hand on Sasuke's shoulder, guiding her towards the door. "It's late and we must rest. I'm sure they'll be awake by tomorrow."

* * *

 _Later that night..._

His whole body felt like it was on fire. Someone had set him on fire and his whole body was burning because there was no other explanation for the pain. Nothing had ever hurt as much as this. Not even going full force against Kaguya. Not even losing his arm after colliding with Sasuke.

Sasuke…

Sasuke should be here…

The thought of Sasuke gave him strength. He tried to open his eyes, to look for his comrade. Tried to call his name. If Sasuke was here… There was something he and Sasuke needed to do. But the pain was too much. It was overpowering. He couldn't think clearly. The pain was consuming him.

Naruto wished for death. Death and peace, a place where the pain would be no more. He could join his parents there… His mom.

"Naruto, rest." The voice echoed in his mind.

It was… familiar.

"Ku- Kurama?"

"Rest. The pain will pass. I'll let you know when it's safe."

It wasn't a confirmation, but Naruto somehow knew he could trust the voice. And he needed the pain to stop. It was maddening. If the voice offered…

Slowly Naruto felt himself slip into unconsciousness.

He didn't know how long he'd been out, but when he woke up again the pain was gone; all there was left was a thin echo of it. He could still feel his muscles burning, his brain cells shaking so badly that he'd feared his head would explode. He could still feel it, but the real thing had passed.

"Naruto…?"

He blinked a couple times, giving his eyes time to adapt the light, scarce as it was. Then he turned to look at his teammate. His best friend.

"How long…?" Sasuke asked weakly.

Naruto thought about it. He blinked once more and allow himself time to study his surroundings. It was night-time, that much was obvious. The moon, visible through the window, provided them with the only source of light. The room was small and tidy, the furniture scarce, and the bed he was laying on was comfortable but unfamiliar. He turned his head to look at Sasuke.

The image was…

"You're young," he said, full of wonder but not really surprised.

Sasuke didn't look impressed.

"And you look like shit," he answered, honest as always.

"You don't look any better," Naruto replied quickly.

It was true. Sasuke's face was too pale, though perhaps it was merely reflecting the white halo of the moon. But his hair was untied, a very rare occurrence, his skin was sweaty and his under-eye circles were big enough to remind Naruto of his brother.

"I always look better than you, idiot."

Naruto smiled, "Bastard."

Sasuke smiled back at him. "How much do you remember?"

Naruto thought about it for a few seconds.

"Just pain."

Sasuke nodded once, his eyes lost in the distance. "Yeah…"

It had been the same for both of them, then. But Sasuke didn't have Kurama to shield him from the pain… which meant he had been awake through all of it. Suffering. Naruto wanted to throw up at the thought. "Sasuke-"

"Don't. What is done is done. We are here now." Naruto didn't necessarily agree, but he recognized that look in his best friend's eyes. It was pure stubbornness. So he let it go. Sasuke sighed and turned to look at him. "It was worth it, anyway. And we are here now."

They really were here. Naruto still couldn't believe that this mad plan of his had worked. And if he started to think of all the people they had left behind, forever lost to them now… Naruto closed his eyes and a tear escaped, trickling down his cheek. He wiped it away, angry at himself. It wasn't the time to think about it.

"Do you regret it?" Sasuke sounded sad, almost guilty. Even though it had been Naruto's idea to leave everything behind to come here, they both knew Sasuke had the power to dissuade him. Naruto would've listened to him. Instead, he had chosen to be selfish once more, caring more about his own needs than those of his friend.

It had been Naruto's idea, but Sasuke's choice to go along with it.

"No." Naruto was sure of that, at least. He might be a fool, yearning for something that would never happen in this reality. He might even be a self-sacrificing fool, giving up everything he knew and loved for an uncertain future, but he was sure of his choice.

The pain of the loss was painful, and it was a kind of pain that would never go away. The memory of his precious people, now forever lost to him, was something that Naruto would always keep alive in his heart. It was the least he owed them, after leaving them behind with little consideration. But given the chance, he would do it all over again. That knowledge made him feel slightly guilty, but perhaps not as much as it should.

"I'm sorry," Sasuke said to him.

Naruto didn't answer. He needed a few moments to regain his composure.

It was pointless to reminiscent about what they had left behind, he reminded himself, when they should be looking forward to this new future instead. There was a whole new world waiting for them, full of posibilities. He waited until his tears had dried and he was sure that his voice wouldn't break before speaking again. "Do you still have the Rinnegan?" He asked Sasuke.

"Yes." Sasuke brushed away his hair from his forehead, and Naruto spied a shadow of purple in his left eye through the shadows of the room. "But I can't use it. With this body's current levels of chakra… it'd be dangerous."

Naruto nodded. Just as they had thought.

"What about you?" Sasuke questioned him.

Naruto closed his eyes, blocking the outside world to his senses while opening the inner world of his mind. "Hagoromo's seal is active, like yours," he determined after a few seconds. "He embedded it in our souls. But this body is… fragile. I don't know if I'm capable of using the sixth path sage mode, or what using it would do to me. And I'll need Kurama's chakra to do it, my current levels are not much higher than yours." Again, it was nothing they hadn't accounted for.

"We will need to train, then," Sasuke didn't sound worried about it. "And Kurama? Is he at full chakra?"

"Yes," Naruto smiled. "We talked for a little while before I woke up. We arrived just in time when the seal was starting to leak, and his future half merged with his present half, as we planned."

"Good," Sasuke nodded, apparently satisfied. "We should sleep. Regain our strength. I'm going to need a genjutsu to hide my eye from Kakashi tomorrow, and he's not easy to trick."

"Are we staying in Konoha, then?" Naruto asked, his voice filled with poorly concealed hope.

"At least for a little while. We don't know where Itachi is at the moment, and it'll be good for you to see everybody again. I know you want to."

Naruto couldn't deny it, just as he couldn't deny the warmth that filled his heart at Sasuke's words. They were proof that Sasuke cared.

Of course, this was no news for Naruto. Sasuke himself had told him so in a few ocassions. And even more important, he had proved it by standing by Naruto's for almost two years after the war. The blond also remembered his brief experience in one of the parallel universes - the universes that Kurama and he had visited while they were searching for the right one to make the journey back in time.

Naruto recalled the intensity of that universe's Sasuke's gaze as he looked at Naruto, the tickling sensation on his hand as Sasuke held it, the urgency of Sasuke's kisses as he devoured Naruto's mouth and the low whisper in his ear… " _I love you_ ". But those had been the actions of a Sasuke whose heart hadn't been broken and then eviscerated at the tender age of eight; a Sasuke who had grown up surrounded by the love and care of his parents and dear older brother.

That Sasuke had loved Naruto in a fearless, passionate, beautiful way. _His_ Sasuke, however… His Sasuke cared for him too, even if his way of caring was different: more cautious. It was still as much as Sasuke could offer to anyone. And for Naruto, that someone so broken, someone so lost, someone who still woke up screaming most nighs and could barely hold it together most days, still chose to care for him... for Naruto, that was priceless. It meant the world.

Naruto wouldn't let himself wish for more.

* * *

 _How and why Naruto and Sasuke decided to go back in time will be explain in time, along with other inquiries. I won't reveal all the mysteries in the first chapter, but don't worry, because there is a reason for everything and it will be explain in time._

 _Nevertheless I hope you have enjoyed this first chapter. Please let me know your opinions, and if you think the story is worth a shot._

 _To be honest I had stopped caring about Naruto after I read the epilogue. I hated it with all my heart, and not only because I disliked the pairings. Everything was awful! (Except for ShikaTema perhaps). Since then, I lost all my interest in Naruto, which saddened me greatly as it'd been my favourite anime and loyal companion since I was a child. I'm now 23._

 _But the other day I came across a video of Itachi in youtube, and I couldn't resist the temptation to watch it. I loved it, and I couldn't stop thinking about how everything was so unfair! Of course I had to find a way around it and fix it, and what better way than writing my own story._

 _So for everybody reading this, yes, the epilogue did happened in this universe, but not the way you might think. I actually consider myself pretty clever for coming up with this idea, though I was trying to find a reasonable way to erase it for hours. Everything will be reveal in future chapters… as long as I keep writing of course._

 _English is not my first language, so I'd be grateful if anyone points any of the mistakes I made. It's very difficult to improve if I don't know what my mistakes are. I'm also looking for a beta, so if anyone would be interested in helping me with this story just let me know._

 _Thanks everybody. Live long and prosper._


	2. Chapter 2

**THANK YOU EVERYBODY FOR YOUR KIND SUPPORT.**

And thank you again to **Bubbusaja** for her help revising this chapter. You did a great job!

* * *

 **CHAPTER 2**

The journey back to Konoha was a slow one, and there was a noticeable vibe of tension between the team members that Naruto didn't think it had been present during their original mission. He couldn't pinpoint the exact origin of said tension either.

Both Sakura and Kakashi had been terribly relieved when Naruto and Sasuke made their way to the kitchen downstairs that first morning. Sakura had hugged both of them and Sasuke had allowed it, which perhaps was a little out of character for him; and maybe Naruto had clang to her a bit longer than necessary, but that was hardy suspicious considering the enormous crush he had had on her at this age.

His feelings for her were no longer of a romantic nature, but she was still one of his best friends, and after leaving her behind in the future, it was wonderful to see her again. Kakashi too. Their sensei had smiled when he saw them, and for a few seconds his face had lost his usual expressionless features and showed some warmth instead.

That was five days ago. Now they were approaching the Hidden Leaf's borders, and if something had been made obvious during the journey was that Sasuke and Naruto were very different from their twelve years old counterparts. And they weren't doing a very good job at hiding these differences.

It was expected and, at the same time, it was not. They had discussed it in the future, before making the journey, and had agreed to easily slip in their old selves' personalities, at least for as long as they remained in Konoha. Despite everything, Sasuke was still a broody bastard and Naruto the Number One Hyperactive, Knucklehead Ninja. It shouldn't have been too difficult to impersonate their younger selves.

But it was the little things that were made it so hard. The way they walked and held themselves with unspoken confidence. The way they were always aware of their surroundings, without even trying, like experienced shinobi were. And especially the peculiar way they gravitated towards each other: the way their gazes found each other before anything else, the way they exchanged quick conversations with no words, or even the way they moved - always covering each other's back, always in synchrony.

Naruto and Sasuke were clever enough to conceal the first two things from Kakashi, the rest of it though… The rest of it was more difficult to hide.

Once in Konoha, they were ordered to report to Sarutobi's office immediately.

"How bad was it, really?" The Hokage asked seriously, after the three genin had been dismissed. Kakashi met his scrutinizing gaze with his uncovered eye.

"It was bad," he admitted. "They were out for three days. I don't know if Naruto remembers killing Haku, or using the Kyuubi's chakra to do it. But the experience changed him. Both of them, really."

"Oh?" The kage raised an eyebrow.

"When Sasuke jumped in front of Naruto, they both thought it was an attack meant to kill. I did too, to be honest. For Naruto, Sasuke died to save him. And for Sasuke, he gave up his life to save someone, with all that means for him. It changed them. I don't know in what way, yet, but I know it did."

Kakashi closed his eyes for a second, letting himself to remember. The awareness of his left eye burned brighter than ever. He, too, had been saved by a comrade once upon a time. Obito hadn't been as lucky as his cousin. There hadn't been a comeback from the death for him. But his sacrifice had changed Kakashi; Obito had changed him in ways he would've never dared to dream of before.

"I trust you to keep an eye on them." The kage was saying.

"Of course."

"Have you thought about the chuunin exams?"

"It would be a good chance to test them." The jounin agreed easily. "But if Naruto's seal goes off again, especially in presence of any of Konoha's citizens… it could turn into a dangerous situation."

For Naruto as much as for the citizens.

Nobody in the village had forgotten the attack of the nine tailed fox; and there were many who wouldn't pause a second at the chance of taking revenge, even if it meant killing a twelve year old boy as well. This, Kakashi did not say. But Hiruzen heard him anyway.

"I'll send a letter to Jiraya. It should be about time for him to meet his godson, after all."

Kakashi nodded. With the Sannin near, he would feel much more confident sending his students to face the danger of the unknown. Understanding that the conversation was over, he bowed his head and disappeared from the office. His team had been out of Konoha for three weeks. It was very likely that a new exemplar of Icha-Icha had hit the stores in that time. And Kakashi hadn't even had the chance to look at it yet.

That, simply could not be.

* * *

 _Konoha, three months later..._

"Are you okay?"

The question surprised him. Naruto raised his head to glance at Sasuke who was gazing at him from his own small bed in the corner. Since they had arrived to Konoha, eleven weeks ago, Sasuke had all but moved to Naruto's apartment. His friend's house was bigger, but it held too many bad memories and Sasuke had outright refused to set a foot in the Uchiha district again, not even to collect his things. At the end, Naruto had volunteered to go and bring a suitcase full of clothes and weapons for him, plus a few pictures.

He didn't mind it. Living with Sasuke was nice. The flat they had shared for two years after the end of the war had been bigger and more comfortable than their current one, but Naruto didn't need those luxuries to be happy. He simply needed Sasuke by his side. Sharing a room, however, well, that was a little bit more complicated. He tried not to think about it.

"Yeah. You?" He answered with a smile.

Sasuke ignored his question.

"You look worried," he insisted.

"I suppose I'm a bit tired" Naruto admitted with a heavy sigh. In truth, he felt exhausted and without good reason. "I'm sure I'll feel better after a good night of sleep, though."

Sasuke frowned. He lowered his head and glanced at his bed, and for a moment Naruto was sure Sasuke would drop the subject. But then his friend lifted his gaze again, stubbornly. Sasuke's pupils were dark, deep, and familiar, and for Naruto to look into them meant to be at home. Unfortunately, they also had the ability to see too much, always had. Sasuke spoke, "You don't have to lie to me. You don't have to tell me the truth, either. But if you do, I'm here and I will listen."

Naruto felt torn. Sasuke was nothing if not honest, and he was inviting Naruto to open up to him. Naruto wasn't a fool. He knew the kind of person that Sasuke was, always a loner, and he was familiar with the way Sasuke kept his heart locked away behind a steel door. Because of this, Naruto understood how precious and uncommon this offer was - but he felt conflicted, as he didn't want to burden Sasuke with his worries.

At the end, though, Naruto had to make a choice. He took pride in being a good friend, and friendship was a two ways road, so Naruto chose to be brave and share his worries with Sasuke. "It's harder than I thought. Being here," he admitted, to what Sasuke nodded, understanding, but remained silent.

Naruto took a deep breath, seeking the courage to put into words the feelings that had been eating him alive for the last couple of months. "It's… the people. I look at them and I see my friends, my precious people, but they look at me and… I'm just a stranger to them. Even for those who don't hate me or despise me because of Kurama. I'm just no one. And it's not like... like I didn't expect it, because I knew it, I knew was gonna be like this. I just thought I'd be able to create those friendships again, you know. But now, everytime I look at them, every time I try to… I feel like shit. Like a fake. Shit!" He cursed, slamming his fist against the wall.

His blue eyes were filled with rage, but this rage was directed at himself. "I left them, Sasuke," he confessed, not looking at his friend. "My precious people. They loved me, and they counted on me. Of course I knew they were gonna be okay without me, I knew they'd be fine, but I left them nonetheless. Forever. I didn't even explain them why… And all along, I felt _relief_ I was leaving!" All his rage seemed to dissipate after that exclamation, leaving him feeling guilty and exhausted. "What right do I have to walk into their lives again?" He asked, weakly. "I look at them and I see them, not for what they are, but for what they were to me. What right do I have to play with their lives like that?"

"You care for them. You are their friend," Sasuke answered with simplicity.

Naruto shook his head. "No, that's the whole point. They were my friends once, before I left them. But they aren't now. They-."

"Bullshit," Sasuke called him out, not losing his cool. "They might not be your friends, but you are theirs. Or are you going to tell me that you wouldn't die to protect them? That you won't fight for them if they ever need your help?"

"Of course I will!" Naruto replied quickly. There was no doubt about it.

"Then you are their friend. Believe me, I know it better than anyone," Sasuke smiled at him then, almost shyly. "Naruto, you will always be their friend. That's who you are."

Very slowly, Naruto smiled back at him. "You are right. I'll protect them if I ever need to. And I will always love them and watch out for them. But Sasuke, they are so young. They are just kids, while you and I have been through a war. Every time I look at their eyes and I let slip another lie… I don't want to do it anymore. I want them to have a chance to grow up in their own terms, to make their own decisions. It should be them, the ones who decide the kind of person they want to become, not me. I… I lost my friends. I left them behind, and that was my choice. And maybe one day, when they are older, we will become friends again. But that is not going to happen now. And I can't… I can't keep living through the motions, playing god with their future; knowing so much about their lives when they haven't chosen to share that knowledge with me yet. That kind of power is dangerous. And it's not… it's not good. It's not something anyone should have."

Sasuke nodded, slowly. He could understand where Naruto's feelings were coming from, even if he himself wasn't bother by such conflict. But they had never been his friends, not really, not even after the war. They had been his comrades, and he had come to respect some of them; the rest of them he tolerated or ignored, Sakura being the notable exception.

Sakura, he had cared about; he still did. But caring for her had only meant that he wanted her to be happy, and to fulfil all her dreams. Sasuke didn't need those dream to include him - he rather they didn't, actually. That kind of emotion - when someone being happy just wasn't enough, because Sasuke wanted them to be happy _with him_ , because he wanted to be part of their lives, was rare. In all his life, Sasuke had only felt that way about two people. One was sitting in the bed next to him. The last one was his brother.

And Sasuke wasn't planning on lying to Itachi, after he found him. On the contrary. Sasuke was going to tell Itachi nothing but the truth. For once, Sasuke would be the one doing all the talking and his brother would have to listen. Sasuke was going to use his Sharingan and show Itachi the future, all of it. Only then Itachi would realize everything that Sasuke had been through, everything Naruto had sacrificed to give Sasuke this opportunity. Sasuke was sure that if he showed Itachi all this, his big brother wouldn't have any other choice but to give up everything else, and simply choose Sasuke this time.

"We should go, then. If we are careful, we can leave the village tonight."

His words took Naruto by surprise; that was the last thing he expected to hear. Naruto looked at Sasuke, his blue eyes too honest and expressive to hide the susprise he felt. "Sasuke?" He frowned. "I thought you wanted to wait for Itachi? We don't have any guarantee we'll find him if we leave now."

"He is my brother, and you and I are the most powerful shinobi alive. Even if we can't access some of our powers yet, we are strong enough to survive. We will find him." He was sure of that. It could take them a month, or two, or even a year, but they would find Itachi. After finally learning the truth about his brother, and after what Naruto had done for him, after being here now, Sasuke wouldn't let anyone to keep him away from his brother.

Naruto didn't seem as convinced. "Are you sure?"

"You gave up everything for me," Sasuke answered gravely; his dark gaze having captured his best friend's. "I know I was selfish. I know I shouldn't have let you do it. I know if Kakashi or Sakura were here they'd hate me for it and accused me of being a terrible friend."

"Dont-" Naruto tried to interrupt him, to deny these claims, but Sasuke stopped him.

"It's the truth. I know I'm not a very good friend, Naruto, and I've never claimed to be a good person. It's not…" He bit his lower lip. "It's not like I do it on purpose." Caring was difficult. Unnatural. Strange. "Sometimes I remember the way I was a child... how natural everyting felt back then..." he lowered his gaze. He felt ashamed by this confession, and he couldn't bear to meet Naruto's gaze right now.

"I _can't_ be like that again," Sasuke asserted, fixing his gaze on the opposite wall instead, "but you are my friend and I do care about you. You were _always_ my friend, even when I didn't want you to be. It was so easy to look at everybody else and not to care - but with you, it was impossible to look at you and ignore you." And yet Sasuke had tried, he had almost killed Naruto trying, and died himself. The difference was that he didn't want to try anymore. Naruto was his friend. He and Itachi were the only people he cared about in the world. And Sasuke would do anything for them. "So if being here makes you unhappy, then we'll leave," he concluded speaking, a delightful pink blush creeping into his cheeks as he did.

Talking about his feelings was fucking hard. Sasuke made the effort for Naruto, because honesty was the very least he owed his friend after everything he had done for Sasuke, but he hoped that Naruto would see that this was as much as Sasuke could offer for the moment; that he would take him up on his offer and drop the conversation for now. As always, Naruto didn't disappoint him.

He smiled at Sasuke, and his smile was the brightest smile Sasuke had seen on his face in a long time. Naruto stood up from his bed and walked to his side, quietly, sitting in the mattress next to Sasuke and resting his hand over Sasuke's knee. Then his eyes looked up to him. They were very blue eyes. "We leave tonight."

* * *

 _This is it for now. I have the next chapter ready, so I may publish it this weekend if I get enough encouragement ;-)_

 _I hope you liked it, and please let me know your favourites parts, what you think about the development and actions of the characters, and if there is any mistake if I should correct. Thanks for reading!_

 _May the force be with you all!_


	3. Chapter 3

**THANK YOU EVERYBODY FOR YOUR KIND SUPPORT.**

And thank you again to **Bubbusaja** for her help revising this chapter. You did a great job!

* * *

 **CHAPTER 2**

The journey back to Konoha was a slow one, and there was a noticeable vibe of tension between the team members that Naruto didn't think it had been present during their original mission. He couldn't pinpoint the exact origin of said tension either.

Both Sakura and Kakashi had been terribly relieved when Naruto and Sasuke made their way to the kitchen downstairs that first morning. Sakura had hugged both of them and Sasuke had allowed it, which perhaps was a little out of character for him; and maybe Naruto had clang to her a bit longer than necessary, but that was hardy suspicious considering the enormous crush he had had on her at this age.

His feelings for her were no longer of a romantic nature, but she was still one of his best friends, and after leaving her behind in the future, it was wonderful to see her again. Kakashi too. Their sensei had smiled when he saw them, and for a few seconds his face had lost his usual expressionless features and showed some warmth instead.

That was five days ago. Now they were approaching the Hidden Leaf's borders, and if something had been made obvious during the journey was that Sasuke and Naruto were very different from their twelve years old counterparts. And they weren't doing a very good job at hiding these differences.

It was expected and, at the same time, it was not. They had discussed it in the future, before making the journey, and had agreed to easily slip in their old selves' personalities, at least for as long as they remained in Konoha. Despite everything, Sasuke was still a broody bastard and Naruto the Number One Hyperactive, Knucklehead Ninja. It shouldn't have been too difficult to impersonate their younger selves.

But it was the little things that were made it so hard. The way they walked and held themselves with unspoken confidence. The way they were always aware of their surroundings, without even trying, like experienced shinobi were. And especially the peculiar way they gravitated towards each other: the way their gazes found each other before anything else, the way they exchanged quick conversations with no words, or even the way they moved - always covering each other's back, always in synchrony.

Naruto and Sasuke were clever enough to conceal the first two things from Kakashi, the rest of it though… The rest of it was more difficult to hide.

Once in Konoha, they were ordered to report to Sarutobi's office immediately.

"How bad was it, really?" The Hokage asked seriously, after the three genin had been dismissed. Kakashi met his scrutinizing gaze with his uncovered eye.

"It was bad," he admitted. "They were out for three days. I don't know if Naruto remembers killing Haku, or using the Kyuubi's chakra to do it. But the experience changed him. Both of them, really."

"Oh?" The kage raised an eyebrow.

"When Sasuke jumped in front of Naruto, they both thought it was an attack meant to kill. I did too, to be honest. For Naruto, Sasuke died to save him. And for Sasuke, he gave up his life to save someone, with all that means for him. It changed them. I don't know in what way, yet, but I know it did."

Kakashi closed his eyes for a second, letting himself to remember. The awareness of his left eye burned brighter than ever. He, too, had been saved by a comrade once upon a time. Obito hadn't been as lucky as his cousin. There hadn't been a comeback from the death for him. But his sacrifice had changed Kakashi; Obito had changed him in ways he would've never dared to dream of before.

"I trust you to keep an eye on them." The kage was saying.

"Of course."

"Have you thought about the chuunin exams?"

"It would be a good chance to test them." The jounin agreed easily. "But if Naruto's seal goes off again, especially in presence of any of Konoha's citizens… it could turn into a dangerous situation."

For Naruto as much as for the citizens.

Nobody in the village had forgotten the attack of the nine tailed fox; and there were many who wouldn't pause a second at the chance of taking revenge, even if it meant killing a twelve year old boy as well. This, Kakashi did not say. But Hiruzen heard him anyway.

"I'll send a letter to Jiraya. It should be about time for him to meet his godson, after all."

Kakashi nodded. With the Sannin near, he would feel much more confident sending his students to face the danger of the unknown. Understanding that the conversation was over, he bowed his head and disappeared from the office. His team had been out of Konoha for three weeks. It was very likely that a new exemplar of Icha-Icha had hit the stores in that time. And Kakashi hadn't even had the chance to look at it yet.

That, simply could not be.

* * *

 _Konoha, three months later..._

"Are you okay?"

The question surprised him. Naruto raised his head to glance at Sasuke who was gazing at him from his own small bed in the corner. Since they had arrived to Konoha, eleven weeks ago, Sasuke had all but moved to Naruto's apartment. His friend's house was bigger, but it held too many bad memories and Sasuke had outright refused to set a foot in the Uchiha district again, not even to collect his things. At the end, Naruto had volunteered to go and bring a suitcase full of clothes and weapons for him, plus a few pictures.

He didn't mind it. Living with Sasuke was nice. The flat they had shared for two years after the end of the war had been bigger and more comfortable than their current one, but Naruto didn't need those luxuries to be happy. He simply needed Sasuke by his side. Sharing a room, however, well, that was a little bit more complicated. He tried not to think about it.

"Yeah. You?" He answered with a smile.

Sasuke ignored his question.

"You look worried," he insisted.

"I suppose I'm a bit tired" Naruto admitted with a heavy sigh. In truth, he felt exhausted and without good reason. "I'm sure I'll feel better after a good night of sleep, though."

Sasuke frowned. He lowered his head and glanced at his bed, and for a moment Naruto was sure Sasuke would drop the subject. But then his friend lifted his gaze again, stubbornly. Sasuke's pupils were dark, deep, and familiar, and for Naruto to look into them meant to be at home. Unfortunately, they also had the ability to see too much, always had. Sasuke spoke, "You don't have to lie to me. You don't have to tell me the truth, either. But if you do, I'm here and I will listen."

Naruto felt torn. Sasuke was nothing if not honest, and he was inviting Naruto to open up to him. Naruto wasn't a fool. He knew the kind of person that Sasuke was, always a loner, and he was familiar with the way Sasuke kept his heart locked away behind a steel door. Because of this, Naruto understood how precious and uncommon this offer was - but he felt conflicted, as he didn't want to burden Sasuke with his worries.

At the end, though, Naruto had to make a choice. He took pride in being a good friend, and friendship was a two ways road, so Naruto chose to be brave and share his worries with Sasuke. "It's harder than I thought. Being here," he admitted, to what Sasuke nodded, understanding, but remained silent.

Naruto took a deep breath, seeking the courage to put into words the feelings that had been eating him alive for the last couple of months. "It's… the people. I look at them and I see my friends, my precious people, but they look at me and… I'm just a stranger to them. Even for those who don't hate me or despise me because of Kurama. I'm just no one. And it's not like... like I didn't expect it, because I knew it, I knew was gonna be like this. I just thought I'd be able to create those friendships again, you know. But now, everytime I look at them, every time I try to… I feel like shit. Like a fake. Shit!" He cursed, slamming his fist against the wall.

His blue eyes were filled with rage, but this rage was directed at himself. "I left them, Sasuke," he confessed, not looking at his friend. "My precious people. They loved me, and they counted on me. Of course I knew they were gonna be okay without me, I knew they'd be fine, but I left them nonetheless. Forever. I didn't even explain them why… And all along, I felt _relief_ I was leaving!" All his rage seemed to dissipate after that exclamation, leaving him feeling guilty and exhausted. "What right do I have to walk into their lives again?" He asked, weakly. "I look at them and I see them, not for what they are, but for what they were to me. What right do I have to play with their lives like that?"

"You care for them. You are their friend," Sasuke answered with simplicity.

Naruto shook his head. "No, that's the whole point. They were my friends once, before I left them. But they aren't now. They-."

"Bullshit," Sasuke called him out, not losing his cool. "They might not be your friends, but you are theirs. Or are you going to tell me that you wouldn't die to protect them? That you won't fight for them if they ever need your help?"

"Of course I will!" Naruto replied quickly. There was no doubt about it.

"Then you are their friend. Believe me, I know it better than anyone," Sasuke smiled at him then, almost shyly. "Naruto, you will always be their friend. That's who you are."

Very slowly, Naruto smiled back at him. "You are right. I'll protect them if I ever need to. And I will always love them and watch out for them. But Sasuke, they are so young. They are just kids, while you and I have been through a war. Every time I look at their eyes and I let slip another lie… I don't want to do it anymore. I want them to have a chance to grow up in their own terms, to make their own decisions. It should be them, the ones who decide the kind of person they want to become, not me. I… I lost my friends. I left them behind, and that was my choice. And maybe one day, when they are older, we will become friends again. But that is not going to happen now. And I can't… I can't keep living through the motions, playing god with their future; knowing so much about their lives when they haven't chosen to share that knowledge with me yet. That kind of power is dangerous. And it's not… it's not good. It's not something anyone should have."

Sasuke nodded, slowly. He could understand where Naruto's feelings were coming from, even if he himself wasn't bother by such conflict. But they had never been his friends, not really, not even after the war. They had been his comrades, and he had come to respect some of them; the rest of them he tolerated or ignored, Sakura being the notable exception.

Sakura, he had cared about; he still did. But caring for her had only meant that he wanted her to be happy, and to fulfil all her dreams. Sasuke didn't need those dream to include him - he rather they didn't, actually. That kind of emotion - when someone being happy just wasn't enough, because Sasuke wanted them to be happy _with him_ , because he wanted to be part of their lives, was rare. In all his life, Sasuke had only felt that way about two people. One was sitting in the bed next to him. The last one was his brother.

And Sasuke wasn't planning on lying to Itachi, after he found him. On the contrary. Sasuke was going to tell Itachi nothing but the truth. For once, Sasuke would be the one doing all the talking and his brother would have to listen. Sasuke was going to use his Sharingan and show Itachi the future, all of it. Only then Itachi would realize everything that Sasuke had been through, everything Naruto had sacrificed to give Sasuke this opportunity. Sasuke was sure that if he showed Itachi all this, his big brother wouldn't have any other choice but to give up everything else, and simply choose Sasuke this time.

"We should go, then. If we are careful, we can leave the village tonight."

His words took Naruto by surprise; that was the last thing he expected to hear. Naruto looked at Sasuke, his blue eyes too honest and expressive to hide the susprise he felt. "Sasuke?" He frowned. "I thought you wanted to wait for Itachi? We don't have any guarantee we'll find him if we leave now."

"He is my brother, and you and I are the most powerful shinobi alive. Even if we can't access some of our powers yet, we are strong enough to survive. We will find him." He was sure of that. It could take them a month, or two, or even a year, but they would find Itachi. After finally learning the truth about his brother, and after what Naruto had done for him, after being here now, Sasuke wouldn't let anyone to keep him away from his brother.

Naruto didn't seem as convinced. "Are you sure?"

"You gave up everything for me," Sasuke answered gravely; his dark gaze having captured his best friend's. "I know I was selfish. I know I shouldn't have let you do it. I know if Kakashi or Sakura were here they'd hate me for it and accused me of being a terrible friend."

"Dont-" Naruto tried to interrupt him, to deny these claims, but Sasuke stopped him.

"It's the truth. I know I'm not a very good friend, Naruto, and I've never claimed to be a good person. It's not…" He bit his lower lip. "It's not like I do it on purpose." Caring was difficult. Unnatural. Strange. "Sometimes I remember the way I was a child... how natural everyting felt back then..." he lowered his gaze. He felt ashamed by this confession, and he couldn't bear to meet Naruto's gaze right now.

"I _can't_ be like that again," Sasuke asserted, fixing his gaze on the opposite wall instead, "but you are my friend and I do care about you. You were _always_ my friend, even when I didn't want you to be. It was so easy to look at everybody else and not to care - but with you, it was impossible to look at you and ignore you." And yet Sasuke had tried, he had almost killed Naruto trying, and died himself. The difference was that he didn't want to try anymore. Naruto was his friend. He and Itachi were the only people he cared about in the world. And Sasuke would do anything for them. "So if being here makes you unhappy, then we'll leave," he concluded speaking, a delightful pink blush creeping into his cheeks as he did.

Talking about his feelings was fucking hard. Sasuke made the effort for Naruto, because honesty was the very least he owed his friend after everything he had done for Sasuke, but he hoped that Naruto would see that this was as much as Sasuke could offer for the moment; that he would take him up on his offer and drop the conversation for now. As always, Naruto didn't disappoint him.

He smiled at Sasuke, and his smile was the brightest smile Sasuke had seen on his face in a long time. Naruto stood up from his bed and walked to his side, quietly, sitting in the mattress next to Sasuke and resting his hand over Sasuke's knee. Then his eyes looked up to him. They were very blue eyes. "We leave tonight."

* * *

 _This is it for now. I have the next chapter ready, so I may publish it this weekend if I get enough encouragement ;-)_

 _I hope you liked it, and please let me know your favourites parts, what you think about the development and actions of the characters, and if there is any mistake if I should correct. Thanks for reading!_

 _May the force be with you all!_


	4. Chapter 4

I must say that I almost didn't update this story again. I was terrible upset with a few homophobic reviews that I received, which weren't about criticizing the fic, but the LGBT+ community. I even deleted the chapter 3 after reading then, because they made me terrible angry.

I don't believe in heteronormativity. Along history every society has stablished different rules for concepts such as gender, sexuality, freedom, hobbies, food, etc…

For me, sexual preference is only a social construct. Two thousand years ago all Greece was bisexual, even though it wasn't exactly bisexuality (that's a modern concept). But it was expected of a man was to have sex with both men and women. The Roman citizens had the Bacchanals, and what a wonderful celebration it was. I'd chose to follow Dionisios over the Christian God a thousand times over.

But I don't criticized those who do. I respect everybody's choices and freedom, as long as they don't use them to bring harm to others, and silly of me, I expect the same respect from everybody else. Obviously it is foolish to think so.

As I said, I even deleted this chapter and I decided I wasn't going to follow this story here anymore. But today I changed my mind, because I have the right to post everything I want here, as long as I follow the website's rules, and because I'm sick of people telling other people what to think, how to act and who to love, who to fuck, what to write or what to read. Well, screw them.

For all of you who are reading this story because you like it, here is the new chapter.

Enjoy it!

* * *

 **I want to thank again my beta Bubbusaja, who is helping me to edite the first few chapters of this story.**

* * *

 **CHAPTER 3**

 _Sowhere in Earth Country, two weeks later..._

Naruto's plan had been brilliant in its simplicity. Honestly, Sasuke felt ashamed of himself for not coming up with the idea all those years ago. It certainly would have saved him a lot of trouble.

After their conversation, Naruto and he packed two bags with everything they needed to take with them, which wasn't much anyway. They waited until the moon was high in the sky and the village was relatively quiet, and then they climbed out the window and walked away, stepping beyond the gates. They also left behind a couple of shadow clones to cover for their absence.

"How do you think they are doing?" Naruto asked him as if reading his thoughts.

Sasuke shrugged.

"They hadn't been discovered yet, so I assumed they are doing fine."

"Well, we instructed them to wait two weeks. After tomorrow everybody will know we've left, and they'll probably send someone to retrieve us." Naruto couldn't help but feeling slightly guilty about it, but not enough to go back.

The first few days traveling with Sasuke had been a huge respite. Since nobody else was around, Naruto didn't need to put on an act anymore. He didn't need to pretend to be an oblivious child, and he no longer needed to act like someone who'd never been seen the horrors of war: the worst and best of humanity. He didn't have to look at Kakashi's only eye and talk to him as if he were ignorant of the loss that tormented him, and didn't have to look at this young Sakura as he yearned for the woman he had left behind.

"I'm counting on that," Sasuke said.

"Oh?" Naruto glanced at him, frowning. "Why do I get the feeling you're hiding something from me?"

Sasuke didn't address that question. Instead he just smirked at him, the bastard. Unfortunately, the smug look on his face made him look particularly attractive, and for a just a second Naruto wished to wipe the smirk off his face with his fist. Or maybe with a kiss. Now, _that_ was an idea. It would bring the bastard down to Earth, if nothing else.

That image only lasted a second, though, and Naruto felt guilty immediately afterwards. But a second was enough for a dangerous surge of desire to uncoil within him. Naruto fought fiercely against it, ruthlessly suppressing his arousal.

"It's not like I'm the only one." Sasuke was defending himself, a scowl in his face. He had misinterpreted Naruto's expression for anger directed at him. Naruto wasn't going to clarify his mistake. "Or are you telling me you didn't let any instructions for your clone?"

"Fine," Naruto admitted distractedly, forcing himself to sound normal. "I might have told him to do a thing or two for me."

"You see? You have not right to complain."

In different circumstances Naruto's curiosity would've led him to pester Sasuke until he confessed everything, even the smallest details of his plan. This time though, he was happy to drop the subject. His heart was beating too hard, and his body still felt too hot to focus his attention on anything else. The image of him kissing Sasuke –adult Sasuke, angry Sasuke–, just to wipe off his smirk was difficult to forget. It made him feel guilty, but also aroused - which, in turn, made him feel even guiltier.

His body reaction was also more intense than normal, confusing him. Naruto had accepted a long time ago that he was physically attracted to his best friend. It wasn't even that unusual. Generally he prefer the company of women, but he had been attracted to a few males as well. And Sasuke was beyond beautiful. Anyone with a pair of eyes could tell.

Nevertheless, when he allowed himself to remember the things he had experienced in "that one universe", as he called it, it wasn't the physical relationship between that version of Sasuke and Naruto that he yearned for the most. It was the intimacy between them. That closeness that went beyond words or touches, for it had felt as if their very souls were tied to each other.

On the other hand, while it was true that sharing a room with Sasuke didn't help Naruto to get over his attraction to him, living together wasn't a new development. They had, after all, shared an apartment for two years after the war. Naruto had witnessed Sasuke getting out of the shower more times than he would have liked, and yes, obviously, that image had been _hard_ to forget - but now, it was only a mental picture he had come up with. It shouldn't be so difficult to turn off his arousal. Which probably meant that his body's reaction wasn't as much about Sasuke as it was about Naruto.

It had been, he recalled now, at least five months since the last time he had sex, and for someone as physical as him, five months was a long time. This realization made Naruto's heart feel lighter - as if a heavy burden were taken off his shoulders. He finally understood what was wrong with his dick. He was turn on because his best friend was a very attractive man, and Naruto was sexually deprived.

This had little to do with Sasuke _himself_ , as person, so Naruto had less of a reason to feel guilty. Of course, taking into consideration that his body was currently in the form of a twelve years old, and that he looked far under the age that any decent woman or man would consider it acceptable for a bed partner, well, that opened up a whole new series of issues.

Now, Naruto felt depressed. This problem hadn't occurred to him before. Not that it would have changed his mind if he had, of course, but still. The prospect of going without sex for the next three to four years was not an appealing one. In fact, it was gloomy enough to finally cool down his body.

"… Naruto?"

Sasuke was calling his name.

"Eh?"

"I asked if you are feeling alright."

"Sure." Naruto nodded cheerfully. "I was just thinking. How long are we from Iwagakure anyway?"

They had entered Earth Country two days ago. The country was large, the largest of the five ninja nations; the weather was pleasant compared to Suna and its relationship with Konoha wasn't the best, which made it the perfect place for hiding.

"Depends. Two or three days, if we keep up this speed. But I don't want to get to close to the hidden village. We'll keep going north for today, a tomorrow we'll turn west, towards Rock."

Naruto nodded.

"It's a good plan. Any reason you want to go to _Ishi no Kuni_?"

Sasuke shuddered.

"Maybe. It's too soon to tell." He paused for a moment, and hesitated before saying. "There should be a small village a few miles from here. They have an onsen. We could go and spend the night."

His friend looked at him in surprise, his lips curving into a big smile.

"Really? How do you know?"

"I stayed there with Team Taka once."

It had been back when Sasuke was still looking for Itachi to kill him, so he preferred not to think about it. Naruto understood this and didn't pursue this topic of conversation. He did have a question, though. "Do they have ramen there?"

Sasuke rolled his eyes just as Naruto had expected, and refused to dignify that with an answer. Nevertheless, his eyes sparkled and his lips curved at the corners. There were parts of Naruto that would never change, and surprisingly, Sasuke was thankful for that.

"Idiot..."

* * *

 _Two days later, in Konoha..._

In Konoha, the two clones had been following Sasuke's and Naruto's instructions by carrying out their day-to-day work as usual for the last two weeks, which chiefly included training, hanging out in Ichiraku, and conducting a series of D-rank missions along with Kakashi and Sakura. Today, however, was the day that the teams from the other villages were arriving for the chuunin exams, and it was also the last day of the previously mentioned two week period, which meant that they both had things to do before disappearing to be reunited with their original selves.

From their apartment's roof, Naruto and Sasuke shared a quick glance and nodded at each other, before taking off in different routes. Today of all days, there was not time to lose.

Naruto found Gaara very quickly. He remembered very well the first moment he had seen him, all those years ago, and the address where his old friend and his siblings were staying for the duration of the exams. He entered the building discreetly, and didn't hesitate to knock in their apartment's door. Unsurprisingly, it was Temari who opened it. She lowered her eyes to meet his with an black expression on her face.

"What do you want?" She demanded.

"I'm here to see your brother."

She scowled at that, glaring at him with suspicion. Honestly, Naruto had forgotten her ability to scare people off with just one glare, but he didn't allow himself to be intimidated. "And what business you might have with Kankurou?"

"Not that brother," Naruto pointed out. "I'd like to see Gaara."

At that, her scowl deepened, and for a moment she failed to successfully conceal the fear from her features. She recovered quickly. "That's not a good idea. Go away," she demanded.

Not uttering another word, she tried to shut the door on his face, but Naruto was quicker. "Please," He begged her, holding the door open with his right foot. "I only want to talk to him." Seeing as Temari was going to refuse him again, he added. "You know I can't hurt him. The worst thing that can happen it's that he hurts _me_. And I really need to talk to him."

Temari narrowed her eyes, not quite willing to trust him yet, but at least she ceased her attempts to shut the door on his face. "Why?" The perplexity on her voice was real, and Naruto reminded himself that she had always loved his youngest brother, even if she had feared him too. "He's dangerous. If you value your life, you will leave him alone."

He decided to answer honestly, "Because I'm the same as he is - and that I doesn't mean I'm not a person as well. Gaara deserved to know that. And he deserved to know that he is not alone. I owed him that."

For the first time in the conversation Temari looked at him, _really_ looked at him - and it was obvious that she was stunned by his words. Finally she said, "He's in the roof. He spends most of his day there. Go talk to him if you want to, kid, but don't say I didn't warn you. If he kills you, it's on you."

Naruto nodded in agreement. Then, he left for the roof.

Once there, he spotted Gaara easily. He was a lonely figure sitting on the edge of the building. He was surrounded by a cloud of sand, but the sand remained still, at least until he sensed Naruto approaching. Then it rose up like a deadly wave, threatening to attack at the slightest provocation. Stubbornly, Naruto chose to ignore this obvious threat and, instead, walked determinedly to Gaara's side, sitting down next to him.

"Who are you? Why are you here?" Gaara demanded in disbelief.

Naruto could tell by his voice that Gaara was very shocked by his presence, and even more confused by the fact that anyone would choose to come near him willingly. Naruto was more than ready to take advantage of this confusion. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki. I'm Sasuke's best friend, Kurama's jinchuuriki, and a shinobi of The Leaf." His cheerful tone of voice made Gaara narrowed his eyes.

"I don't know any Sasuke and I don't know what a jinchuuriki is, but if you don't leave now I'll kill you," he promised. "That's what I do. I kill others to reassure my own existence." There was a more than note of pride on his voice as he uttered this words, but this time Naruto was old enough to discern the vast loneliness and desperation that lured behind them.

Naruto's heart shattered painfully at the evidence of the dreadful existence his old friend had led up until this moment, and that was the reason Naruto could not leave Gaara behind the way he had left everyone else in the village - not without talking to him first.

"Sasuke is a bastard," he addressed his first question first. "He's always grumpy and scowling. I believe you two would get along greatly if you got to know each other. He is also the most important person in my life. And a jinchuuriki is a container. It's someone who has a tailed beast sealed within them. The tail beasts are the beings with the highest amount of chakra in the world," he explained. "At the beginning the bijus were friendly and good, but then the shinobi enslaved them and forced them to use their powers against each other, and as a result, they became resentful and full of hatred. There are nine of them. Kurama, the one sealed inside of me, is the oldest one and has nine tails. Shukaku is the youngest one, and has only one tail. He is the biju that is sealed inside of you."

Against his will, Gaara found himself listening to this boy. His story made sense in a very strange way. "… another being… inside me?"

"Yes," Naruto nodded.

The ginger teenager frowned. He wanted to hate this kid, this little shinobi whose cheerful and friendly behaviour was weird enough to unsettle and confused Gaara. This child was too joyful and too naïve to merit his attention, to really _be_ someone. He shouldn't be paying him more attention than he did to the flies that were accidentally crushed under the weight of his sand.

And yet, he couldn't help but noticing, his innocent looks were misleading. It was his eyes that gave him away: those eyes were not strangers to loss. They were the eyes of a person who had experienced death, and not just as a witness. No matter how deceiving his bright spirit try to be, Gaara was sure of this: the child in front of him was a killer.

But there were other emotions luring behind those eyes too; ones that Gaara could not decipher quite yet. If he had to name one, he would say it was kindness; the kindness of a person who after having seen the worst of humanity was still willing to believe in the goodness of it. The other one, though; the other was an emotion Gaara hadn't seen in years. The last time he had witnessed it, it had been in the gentle eyes of his uncle.

The similitude rendered him speechless for a moment.

"Why?" He asked a second later.

In truth, he himself didn't know what was asking.

"For power, I suppose. You and I, our fathers did it to protect our villages." Naruto explained sadly. "That's the thing about _kages_ , you know. Not matter how much they love someone, the village always come first. That's what makes them great shinobis, and shitty parents. My father, the forth Hokage, gave up his life to save Konoha the day I was born. And right before he died, he sealed the Kyuubi inside of me, so one day I'd be strong enough to protect the village too. He loved me, I know that, but because of him I had to grow up alone and hated by everybody without ever knowing why, wondering what had I done to them to make them hate me so much."

As difficult as it was to talk about it, Gaara deserved to listen to the truth. Naruto turned his head to look at him, and his gaze was full of sadness and memories. "Your father did the same," he told Gaara. "He needed a weapon to protect his village, so he used you. And he never explained to you why he did it, or why everybody hated you, why they feared you. He mistook your gentleness for weakness, and wanted you to get stronger, so he ordered your uncle to kill you, and in case he failed, he was ordered to lie to you too." Gaara himself had confessed this to Naruto more than two years ago, his eyes full of tears.

At this revelation the sand surrounding Gaara - sand that had remained still on the ground while he listened to Naruto's story - suddenly came to life. It spiraled around Gaara without direction and leapt violently towards Naruto. "You're lying!" He cried. "Why would you say that? How do you know that? Liar! Liar!" Naruto dodge the attack effortlessly, vanishing from his seat at the roof's edge and reappearing seconds later, a few steps away from his original location.

"I'm not lying," he explained calmly. "And I think you know it. 'The medicine for the pain in your heart'," He quoted, recalling the memories that his friend had shared with him once upon a time. "Your uncle loved you. Just as your mother did. She loved you more than anything, like my mom loved me too. And she left proof of her love for you in the sand that surrounds you. It's not Shukaku who protects you, but her spirit."

Tears were sliding down Gaara's face now. His heart hurt. His chest hurt. His heart pained him as it hadn't in years, not since the moment he'd tattooed the word "love" his forehead and decided he would live only for himself, and love only himself.

Gaara hated the kid in front of him, he hated him like he hadn't hated anyone before - not even his own father, who had tried to kill him innumerable times. Gaara wanted to kill this kid. He wanted to wrap his sand around his body and constrict it, so that Gaara would hear the very satisfying noise of his bones shattering. And yet, despite of that, he did nothing. He didn't move, and he didn't attack. He was paralyzed in fear. He was frightened that the kid was not only speaking the truth, but that part of him, part of Gaara, wished to believe him.

"Why?" He cried, a broken expression upon his features. "Why are you telling me these things?"

"Because you are one of us," Naruto responded, calmly. There were other reasons too, but this was the one he could share with his friend. "We jinchuuriki are hated for no reason. People despise us, and yet, they still seek to use us to their benefit. The world will never be a kind place for us, but that's why we have to stick together - the jinchuuriki and the tailed beasts too. If the world is scared of us, we'll prove them there is no reason to fear us. If they want to destroy us, we'll fight them off and show them that it's not easy to mess with us. And if they want to insolate us we'll let them know that we are not alone." Naruto smiled at this point, walking closer to Gaara and resting his hand over his friend's shoulder. "You are not alone, Gaara. You are my fellow jinchuuriki, and one day I hope you'll be my friend too. But even if you don't want to be that, you can't stop me from caring about you."

Gaara was very still, and for several moments it seemed like he wasn't going to say anything at all, but when he finally looked at Naruto, Naruto noticed that there were new and unfamiliar emotions staring at him from his friend's dark eyes. "Who are you?" He asked again.

"I'm Naruto Uzumaki," Naruto answered this time. "I'm a shinobi of the Leaf: I will fight for my village if the need arises and I'll die to protect it if I must, but I won't let anyone dictate who I am or the path I should follow. It's up to me to decide the life I want to live, and no one else," he stated with confidence. "Don't let your enemies control you, Gaara. Don't be a monster just because they think that's the only thing you can be. Don't be unhappy just because they'll never believe a jinchuuriki has feelings too. Whatever path you choose, choose it for yourself. And remember that you aren't alone; you can always count on me. I'm your friend. If you need me…," he searched his pocket for a moment, and offered Gaara a small silver chain. "-this seal will bring you to me."

Gaara reached out to take the small item, cautiously, and said nothing. Naruto sighed, and stepped back. "Keep it a secret for me, will you?" He requested. "There is something I have to do now, something I promised to a person very important to me. But I'm afraid many people will be upset when they discover I left the village and they will try to find me. It's better if they don't, not until this person has found what he is looking for, at least."

Gaara glanced at him in disbelief.

"You… You would trust me with this?" He asked, his incredulity plain on his face.

"Of course. You might not see my as a friend, but I consider you as my brother. We are really related, in a way, through Kurama and Shukaku." After a second of pause, he added, "Try to give Shukaku a chance, if you can. He is the youngest of the bijus, and as such the humans' betrayal hit him the hardest. In the end, he's just as hurt and alone as you are. You both could do with a friend."

Naruto smiled at Gaara one last time and then disappeared in a puff of smoke. Gaara was left behind to consider what he had learned. There was much his old friend needed to think about, but for the moment, Naruto's business in Konoha was finished.


	5. Chapter 5

_**Thank you to everybody for their kinds reviews. I'm so happy so many people are following this story now! Thank you as well to my betas, Caia and Meredith, who helped me so much to improve the quality of this fic.**_

 _ **I hadn't had in mind to update the next chapter so early, but after the incredible support I received from you readers last chapter, this is my modest gift to you and my way to say thank you. I really appreciate the effort it takes to leave at comment, let alone a constructive one. So for you, here is chapter 5. Enjoy it!**_

* * *

 **Chapter 4.**

Sasuke's shadow clone waited patiently until he sensed Naruto chakra disappearing from one of the lowest roofs of the city, before walking straight to the Hokage Tower. It wasn't as much that he'd wanted to keep this meeting a secret from Naruto, as that he had wanted to ensure Naruto wasn't anywhere near by the time the meeting was finished.

But he would tell Naruto about it, Sasuke reminded himself. So there was nothing about what to feel guilty.

There were two guards escorting the Hokage's office's door; both of them wearing ANBU mask. Obviously Sasuke wasn't fooled by their obvious presence; he knew they were just the decoys, and the real security was probably watching everything from the shadows. Luckely for him, as far as they knew, he was only a genin fresh out of the academy; a genin with a powerful bloodline, mind you, but still not a threat for their Hokage. It made things easier for him.

"I had an urgent business to discuss with the Hokage," He told the guards with a straight face, not giving anything away by the tone of his voice.

As expected, they scoffed at him.

"The Hokage is busy attending important village's matters, kid. Come back another day."

He didn't hesitate.

"It's about Naruto."

That shut them up. The two guards shared a quick glance through their mask, and seemed to vacillate. Sasuke had expected this. He knew the Hokage had granted Naruto access to his office from a young age, and he knew the guards were aware of it and they _hate_ it. They hated Naruto, and were only waiting for an excuse to dispose of him.

"What about that kid?" One of the guards dare to ask, forcing his voice to sound only mildly interested.

Inwardly, Sasuke smiled. He had them. The mighty ANBU, the most skillful shinobis, the pride of Konoha, and yet, it was shamefully easy to play them once he brought up their fears. Idiots, all of them.

In the outside, his expression had not changed.

"I will only speak to the Hokage. It's urgent."

They glanced at each other again. Finally, one of them nodded.

"Wait here." The ANBU disappeared inside the office to return only a few seconds later. "The Hokage will see you now."

Sasuke didn't show signs of having heard him; what's more, he refused to acknowledge the guard's presence in any way. He walked to the door, opened it, walked into the office, and closed the door behind him. Then he turned around to look at the man that ruled the village, only to find the Hokage looking straight back at him.

The Hokage had a gentle smile on his lips and was smiling at him.

"Good morning, Sasuke," he greeted him amicably. "My guard informed me that you have something to tell about your teammate?"

He used the word 'teammate' instead of 'Naruto' on purpose.

"Yes," Sasuke acquiesced easily. "There is something you should know about him. About both of us, really."

"Oh?"

"We are leaving the village."

Judging by his expression, that declaration was the last thing the Hogake had expected to hear. Sasuke suppressed a pleased grin.

In truth, he didn't hate the old man _too much_. Sasuke had lived enough to understand now that revenge would bring him no happiness nor peace. And after all the things that Naruto had sacrificed for him, after been given the chance to meet Itachi once again one day soon and finally being able to make things right with his brother, he wasn't about to disdain Naruto's gift by hurting someone that he cared about, or, at the very least, someone he respected.

Sasuke would not hesitate to slaughter whoever dared to threaten those important to him, and he would kill anyone who took pleasure hurting others, because Sasuke didn't want anyone else to live through what he did, not if he could help it. But the Hokage didn't enter any of these groups. His crime had been being too soft and too complacent. He had trusted the wrong man, more than once, and refused to see the darkness on those who were closest to him. He had been a tired old man, forced to take office again after his retirement, and he had lacked the strength to take hard decisions when it was needed.

That was why he had allowed Naruto to grow up the way he had, and why he had allowed the Uchiha Clan to be alienated from the village, and then failed to reach a deal with the clan to prevent the coup d'état.

But his actions had never come out of hatred. His affection for Naruto was sincere, and he had truly wished for a peaceful resolution to end the conflict. It was because of this that Sasuke only considered him guilty of his clan massacre to a small degree. And he was mature enough now to admit that the same could be said about Sasuke's own father and mother, his clan, and even Itachi.

They all shared some of the blame, but none of them had deliberately plotted to make it happen. None of them had deliberately tried to hurt him or his brother. Knowing this, Sasuke could rationalize his emotions. He was capable to face the Hokage without having his mind clouded by hate.

It didn't mean that Sasuke didn't resent him, however. He was not looking for ways to kill the old man, but he wouldn't move a finger to save him either. And taunting him made Sasuke feel a great deal of satisfaction, not matter how childish said emotion was.

"Leave?" The Hokage repeated, as if he were unable to decipher the meaning of the word.

"That what I said."

Sasuke could see how his rudeness threw the Hokage off for a second. Despite being a soldier, no doubt the man had grown used to be treated respectfully by all his subordinates; but he recovered very quickly.

His gentle smile returned to his face. He didn't seem worried. Did he think Naruto had rubbed off his bad manners on Sasuke?

"I'm surprised to hear that," he said. "I had thought you'd be training extra-hard now that the chuunin exams are nearing. Don't you wish to become a chuunin, Sasuke?"

As if ranks had anything to do with the abilities of a true shinobi. But that wasn't something his teenager self would say. Sasuke reminded himself that he was here to achieve a goal, not merely to taunt the old man. "Of course I do. But I'm sure there will be more opportunities for us to obtain that rank. Right now there is something more urgent I need to do."

The Hokage was no longer smiling, but didn't seem angry either. "And can I ask what that is?"

Sasuke shook his head.

"It's personal. I need to find a certain person. When I do, I promise I'll come back."

"I see." Hiruzen sighed, feeling tired. It wasn't very hard to guess the identity of the person Sasuke was referring. He had always known this day would come, but hadn't expected it to arrive so early. "And Naruto?"

The young ninja in front of him shrugged.

"I told him I was leaving and he insisted he wanted to come too. I can't say no to him. He's my friend."

The Hokage sighed again. He truly was too old for this.

"I'm sorry, Sasuke," he apologized in a tone that pretended to be understanding. "While I understand how you feel, I'm afraid I can't sanction it. You are too young, and this world is full of dangers, especially for two genin like you and Naruto. This is my advice: wait a few years; train your skills, and once you are made a jounin, I will personally give you an indefinite leave of absence." It was a generous offer. "I know it seems like such a long time now, but-"

Sasuke cut him off. "No, you don't understand." The boy didn't seem to care how rare his offer was, too stubborn and convinced of the righteousness of his goal to consider a different approach. "I have to leave now! The rumours say he's in _Ishi no Kuni_ , but if I wait…" He shook his head, not wanting to reveal more than he already had, and instead said: "I know how to take care of myself, and won't let anything happen to Naruto. You have my word!"

"Sasuke…" It was a warning. The Hokage was starting to lose his patience. "You misunderstand me. I'm afraid I already said all I'm going to about this matter. I won't change my mind. Now if you-"

"I'm afraid you misunderstand me as well, Hokage" Sasuke cut him off again. Just as the Hokage's, his expression have turned much graver. "I'm not asking for permission. You can't stop us. I'm merely here to make sure you won't send anyone after us."

Hiruzen narrowed his eyes, stiffening his posture. He had to remind himself to remain calm. The shinobi before him was only a child, and he could empathize with the reason behind his behaviour. Nevertheless the child kid was overstepping some limits, and there were some in the village who, without a doubt, would take his defiance as an act of rebellion.

"And how exactly do you intend to do that?" He asked.

"If you send anyone to retrieve us before we come back willingly, I will tell whoever you send the _truth_ that you' ve been hiding. And if that someone managed to bring us back to Konoha successfully, then, everyone in the Five Great Shinobi Nations will find out what really happened to my clan, and along with other secrets that Konoha has been hiding. I already made sure of it."

His statement rendered the Hokage speechless for a long moment. Afterwards, when he spoke, his voice was grave and slow and his words full of warning. "You are aware you are speaking treason against the village, and that _that_ is a crime punishable with death." It wasn't really a question.

Sasuke pretended to be taken aback, and yet he remained firm in his resolution.

"I don't want to betray my village. But I must do this."

It was a childish statement; something only a stubborn child would say, a child that didn't realize the true extent of the consequences for his actions. This knowledge allowed Sarutobi to relax his shoulders, if only marginally, and to dismiss the ringing warning in his head.

"Sasuke," he tried again. "I don't know what _you_ _think_ you know about that terrible night, but I guarantee you that there is more to it than you could possible understand. Listen to my advice. Stay in the village. Train to become a better ninja, and enjoy the time with your friends. That's what the people who loved you would want for you. There'll be time for everything else once you become an older, stronger and wiser man. Please."

It was in vain.

"No, I can't do that. You can't understand. I _need_ to find him. _He_ needs to know I forgive him, that I still love him. It's not fair for him…" he paused for a second, seemingly ashamed of his feelings, and then shook his head, fixing his gaze in the distant. "I must tell him. I owe him that. And I promise you that we'll come back. Naruto loves this village. He's loyal to Konoha, even if Konoha never gave him any reason to be; he'd do anything to protect it. And he is important to me, which means that I care for the village too. We'll come back. But you can't send anyone after us. If they tried to make us come back, I'll talk. And even if they succeed, every shinobi will find out the truth."

"I see." The Hokage made a point in showing his disappointment. "You have made up your mind then, and you have everything sorted out. Indeed I can't risk anyone to discover the reasons behind your clan's extinction; it would destroy Konoha's image in our rival villages, and in the mind of many of our own citizens too. We would lose their respect and our moral background." He nodded to himself, as if coming to terms with the following outcome. "It was a good a plan, worthy of a great shinobi of the Leaf. I congratulate you, Sasuke. But you made one mistake."

Sasuke scowled at that.

Hiruzen smiled sadly, and proceeded to explain his words.

"Coming here to tell me this, you presupposed that I would permit you to leave once I failed to convince you to stay. But I'm the Kage of The Leaf. I have a responsibility to every citizen to protect them, and a responsibility to the village to keep it safe against any threat that may arise. As much as I, as a person, can empathize with you ordeal, as the Hokage I can't allow you to leave the village and endanger yourself as well as us."

It wasn't an empty thread. The Hogake wouldn't kill him, but he would not doubt to incapacitate him and then use a seal to render him unable of telling the truth to anyone. Sasuke could see in his body stance that he's getting ready to do just that.

A confrontation would not do. It would only serve to alert others that something strange was going on, and that was precisely what Sasuke had wanted to avoid. He had already achieved his purpose for this meeting, and as fun as it had been to mess around with the man, it was time to put an end to this interview.

"I understand," Sasuke said very seriously, without showing fear. He took a couple of steps back and slipped his hands in his pocket discreetly. "I cannot fight you. That's a combat I'd never win." But as he said this, his right hand reappeared holding a kunai. "But you made a mistake too, _Lord_ Hogake."

Thankfully, Sasuke made no attempt to attack Hiruzen with it, or the Hokage would've been forced to take extra measures against him. "Sasuke? Is this really your answer?" he asked gently, willing to give him one more chance.

The boy ignored it. "As you said, you can't risk to send anyone to retrieve us. That's all I want to hear from you." He smiled… "Your mistake was to think you could prevent us from leaving," …guided the kunai to the most vulnerable part of his neck… "when, in truth, we were gone all along." …and pressed it into his flesh.

By the time the Hokage had read his intentions and tried to stop him, it was too late. The kunai was already deeply buried in his neck. For a second, time stopped. Hiruzen expected to see a familiar blood stream, another young life wasted in the name of the village's safety. Instead he heard a familiar bang, and the body in front of him disappeared in a cloud of smoke.

Slowly, very slowly, realization came to his features. It was followed by disbelief, and then horror. Sasuke's last words echoed in his ears. He closed his eyes and focused, trying to find the familiar chakra of the young Uchiha. When that failed, he tried to search for Naruto's chakra instead.

He found nothing. They were gone. Was it possible, that two young genins had fooled every experienced chuunin and jounin in the village? Hiruzen had no choice but to admit the possibility of it. But if so, for how long?

Naruto was a jinchuuriki; he was the village's most powerful weapon, and if his absence was made public, he would be hunted not only by Konoha's shinobis, but by every other village's as well. As Kage, it was his duty to make sure Konoha retrieved him first, but Naruto was also Minato's son, and Hiruzen owed the Fourth Hogake a personal debt. He could not allow his son be permanently damaged or killed.

The only viable course of action was to keep the whole affair in secret and promptly bring the boys back to Konoha. And yet, the Hokage found himself unable to dismiss Sasuke's threat so easily.

If the boy had spoken the truth, then sending someone to forcefully retrieve them was a risk he could not afford. If the truth about that night were made known, Konoha would not only lose all his moral authority in front of the other villages, but could potentially lose many of its allies too. In the worst case, it could lead to a revolt within the village itself.

His options were very narrow; he would need to prioritize to avoid major losses.

After that, there were only two things he could do.

* * *

 _What do you think? I hope you have enjoyed it. Some of you guessed Sasuke's intention of setting Itachi up in the last chapter, so kudos for you!_

 _I'll see you in the next chapter!_


	6. Chapter 6

**I want to thank my beta Caia for her help with this chapter. She is the best!**

 **I also want to answer one of the "guest reviews" someone left me.**

 **For "guest":** You are so totally right. The ships are perhaps the thing that less bother me of all. " _Naruto turned out to be a scumbag who only cared about being Hokage, not fixing the corrupt system_." That's the worst thing of all. Not only we can see that Naruto is not happy being Hokage, but he also let down after promising he would change the system. It's no wonder that Sasuke left the village and didn't come back for ten years, not even to visit his wife and his daughter!

" _He never revealed the truth about the Uchiha massacre, never helped Sasuke get justice for his family, and never did a thing about the enslavement of the branch family of the Hyuuga clan despite the fact that he fucking married into the family_." I know, right?! I can understand the first thing to an extent, it was after all Itachi's will that his clan be remember with honour. But I can't believe he didn't do anything to sort out the whole mess with the Hyuuga clan. I mean, it's one of the worst injustices that are shown in the manga, and he is married into that family! What the hell?

" _Gaiden just confirmed what a do-nothing Hokage he really is when it turned out Naruto has been allowing Orochimaru to continue his human experimentation unchecked for all this time_." I didn't know this. I haven't watched Gaiden and I don't plan to, but it saddens me a lot to learn about it. Instead of fixing the system as he promised, he just become one of the things that made the system so wrong! I can't believe it. I want to cry!

You are right though. It's because of the terrible ending that many fanfiction writer are taking into writing their own thing (me included). So at least something good came out of it. Thank you for your comment! I'm really glad you are enjoying the story and I hope you will continue to do so in the future.

Now I leave you all to enjoy the chapter...

* * *

 **Chapter 6.**

The Land of Stone was one of the smallest countries of the continent, especially compared to its two main neighbours. In three days Naruto and Sasuke crossed from the East Border to the West's one, and then they decided to wall along the frontier that divided the Stone Country from The Land of Wind.

The landscape was even more barren than before, and a solid wall of rocks and stone marked the separation between the two nations. The weather was also becoming more extreme due to the proximity of the desert; the nights were colder and the days exceptionally hot. At midday, when the sun reached its highest point in the sky, walking under the sun became unbearable. Naruto and Sasuke managed by staying near the cliff, walking right under its shadow.

Their supplies were diminishing quickly too, and they knew they would need to acquire new provisions very soon, which left them with only two choices: they could venture into the Hidden Village, with all the dangers it implied, or they could retreat to the Land of Earth and find a small town near the border where they could replenish their water and food provisions. However, since there hadn't been any signs of Itachi yet, they were both hesitating to make a decision and risk missing him if he showed up at all, which left them in a stalemate.

Despite all this, Naruto and Sasuke remained both in a good mood. The arid weather, the lack of supplies and the uncertainty about the near future brought them memories of the missions they had carried out as kids during their short time as part of Team 7, when their friendship was easy and growing, and they both felt as if nothing could stand in their way as long as they kept becoming stronger.

They were stronger now, potentially the strongest shinobis alive, and yet that feeling of invincibility was gone, lost with the innocence of childhood.

"You know the first thing we should do after finding your brother?" Naruto asked nonchalantly, walking beside Sasuke.

"You mean besides getting out of this arid land of hell?"

"Yeah!" He nodded. Obviously. "We should go to an onsen. One located in the mountains. One that is cool and surrounded by snow. And one where they serve ramen!"

Sasuke snorted. "You don't even like the snow. You couldn't stop complaining when we went on that mission to the Wind Mountains. And you caught a cold."

"I did not!" Naruto protested. He remembered that mission; the cold, the snow and the bloody ice covering everything. There were rumours that a dangerous fugitive had taken shelter at the top of a mountain and they had had to climb all the way to retrieve him. After getting there, however, it was obvious the most dangerous thing in those parts was a family of polar bears that had taken a particular dislike of Naruto. "Besides, that's irrelevant. Give me a few more days of this weather, and I'll kiss the snow next time I see it."

"We'll take Itachi with us, then. He always turned into a chicken when temperatures plunged to below zero."

"Really?" Naruto looked at him with interested.

"Yeah. He hated it when it was cold. When I was three or four my father went on a business trip to the Bird Country and he took us with him. It was winter and everything was covered in snow. I remember thinking I'd never seen anything so white. I loved it there. The snow fights, the sleds… I'd never had so much fun before. I cried when we left. But Itachi refused to leave the house from day one. I remember him looking through the window with an unhappy face, very flushed cheeks and a blanket wrapped around his shoulders."

Naruto smiled at the picture. It was very hard to imagine Itachi, who always portrayed himself as stern and collected, as a little kid with little tolerance for the cold, gloomily watching his little brother having fun with new friends and unable of joining him .

"We'll definitely have to take him there one day, then. And put some snow in his pants since dislikes it so much." He said, sharing an evil grin with Sasuke. "Though it might be better if we wait until we look older than twelve before going. I'm not even sure if they'd let us in, looking as kids."

"Why does it bother you so much, anyway?" Sasuke asked, honestly curious.

"Doesn't it bother you?" Naruto stopped walking for a moment to look at Sasuke; the incredibility was obvious in his voice.

Sasuke shrugged, pausing as well. He reached for his backpack, grabbed his water bottle, and took two long sips. Then he offered it to Naruto.

"No really. I guess it'd bother me if we had to act like kids." He explained while Naruto drank some water. "Or if we had to answer to someone. But we do what we want. We are independent. It doesn't matter that we look like children. What bothers me is that this body is weaker, and that we need to train out automatic responses and elemental taijutsu, again."

"But it's still not the same." Naruto argued, giving the bottle back to Sasuke and waiting until he put it back in his backpack and closed it before resuming the march. "There are lots of things we can't do as kids…"

"Like what?" Sasuke inquired frankly, but without showing a particular interest in the answer.

Naruto paused again, turning his body towards him in an effort to force Sasuke to make eye contact with him. The bastard enjoyed playing mind games with him, and despite the honesty in his voice he still wasn't convinced he was being completely serious and not trying to make a fool out of him.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow and endured the scrutiny for a few, brief seconds, before evading his hold with a fluid movement of his body and resuming his walk. Naruto scowled unhappily, and ran a few steps until he was ahead again.

"There are many things that we could do as adults that we can't do now." He insisted once he had positioned himself in front of Sasuke, face to face with him.

Naruto knew Sasuke wouldn't come to a halt a second time, if only because he was childish like that, so he started walking backwards instead, effortlessly keeping up with his friend's fast pace.

"Name one." The Uchiha demanded, unperturbed.

"Well… I don't know." It was a bit difficult to think when half of his brain was worried with the path that lay at his back and that he currently couldn't see. "We could go to an only-for-adults-onsen, for one. And we could go to buy supplies into any town, and it wouldn't be suspicious."

"We still can do that. It's called Transformation Jutsu, dobe." Sasuke replied looking terribly smug, as if such a simple idea had never occurred to Naruto.

He was provoking him. Naruto realised this. Sasuke knew exactly what buttons to push and how to push them to mess up his self-control. The worst thing is that it worked every time.

"Oy, teme! That's not the same! It's cheating." He protested. "Besides, any ninja would see right through it."

"Good thing normal towns are not made of ninjas, aren't they?"

He was smirking. The arrogant, bull-headed bastard was smirking at him, daring him to break his pretty face with his fists. Naruto growled. Stupid, stupid, arrogant, attractive bastard. That look of superiority on his face made him look even more attractive than usual, which was not fair at all. Instead of using his fists, he wanted to wipe out his offensive smirk with a long, passionate and violent snogging session. He could bite his lips until they were red and swollen. Bet the bastard wouldn't look so smug if that were the case...

But those were bad thoughts, Naruto reminded himself. Bad, dangerous thoughts. Not only because Sasuke was Sasuke, but also because he currently looked like a twelve year old kid, and only perverts fantasized about kids. He wasn't a pervert. Occasionally jerking off in the shower to the image of Sasuke's adult body was one thing, he was sure everybody in Konoha had done that at least once. Even the villagers that hated him.

This was different. This is the reason he avoided these kinds of disputes with Sasuke. Bickering with his best friend always stripped him of his emotional control. He always ended up the same way, either wanting to beat him to a pulp or wanting to fuck him as if there were no tomorrow; and, more often than not, he wanted to do both things at once. Which, again, were very bad thoughts…

He shouldn't be-

"Watch your steps, idiot!"

Sasuke's warning came too late.

Too engross on his thoughts to pay proper attention at the path he was walking, Naruto failed to dodge the big rock that stood in his way, which caused him to trip and heavily fall on his buttocks. It hurt. A lot.

Sasuke laughed at him. "That happens when you insist on walking the wrong way, usuratonkachi."

"Argh! You are just such a bastard!" Naruto accused him angrily, but his words lacked real bite as he was too busy rubbing his sore bottom. Nothing like a bit of pain to bring one back from their wonderful world of fantasies.

"It's not my fault that you are clumsy." Sasuke retorted not feeling guilty at all. All the same he stopped walking for a moment to give Naruto some time to recover. Naruto frowned, still sore, and stubbornly resumed the march, still walking backwards. It was a matter of pride now. "You still haven't give n a good reason of why looking like a kid is so bad." He reminded him.

At this point, Naruto was too annoyed and exasperated to censure his thoughts.

"Well, what if I want to get laid? Eh?" He practically shouted. "No adult in his right mind would fuck a kid, and if someone were willing to I'd beat the shit out of them. I'm out of luck until I turn fifteen at least."

He expected an equally heated retort from Sasuke, but after a couple of second s of silence, Naruto had to blink twice to make sure his eyes weren't deceiving him. Sasuke was… No. He didn't believe it. But it was happening. For real. Sasuke was blushing! His cheeks had turned pale crimson, he had broken eye contact with him, and overall he looked incredibly embarrassed.

"Sasuke! You're blushing!" Naruto cried with a mix of disbelief and amazement.

"Shut up!" Sasuke replied sharply. His features were quickly morphing from embarrassment to anger.

He had never been able to handle a little of friendly mocking well. Not when he was the one being mocked anyway. And this trait had only gotten worse by the fact that only a sparse amount people dared to. Hating him, yes. Doubting his loyalty, all the time. Cursing his surname, more than a few. But mocking him? Only two people dared to do that anymore.

Naruto loved being one of the two.

"What? You don't like the words "getting laid"?" He laughed it off. His ass was still sore and now it was payback time. "What about screwing? Snogging? Plain old fucking?"

"That's none of your business." He stopped walking to shoot daggers at Naruto. "Shut the fuck up, dobe."

Now Naruto started to get angry too. He was only teasing him a bit. Sasuke didn't need to throw threads at him. What the hell? He had laughed his ass off when Naruto had tripped and ended up with his bottom on the ground, and Naruto hadn't even told him off. And now he couldn't take a little bit of friendly teasing?

He squinted his eyes and stopped as well, just a few feet away from Sasuke . They were facing each other.

"Or what, teme?"

"Or I'll ma-" The sentence was left hanging. The first second, Naruto blinked. He missed the panicked look that flew across Sasuke's face. The next second, Sasuke cried "Amaterasu!"

During a third second, one long and excruciating second, Naruto expected black flames to emerge from his body, accompanied by the agony of being burned alive. A second after that, he realised how stupid that fear was. Sasuke would never, ever, do that to him. But during that second, he believed it. It wasn't that long ago that Sasuke had been actively seeking his death. That he doubted Sasuke even for a second showed Naruto that he still wasn't over Sasuke's past betrayal. Not completely.

He would feel guilty about it later. Now there was no time.

He followed his best friend´s gaze, once he realised that Sasuke wasn't – couldn't have been – attacking him. It was fixed on something hanging above his head. It was a rock. Or what was left of it. A rock had fallen off the cliffs edge, and it had been falling straight towards Naruto. It must've been massive at first, but the black flames had consumed most of its mass already.

How he had been so stupid not to realise that a huge rock was falling down on him, Naruto didn't know. He had fought the most powerful and strongest adversaries in the shinobi world, and he had always ended up victorious. How could he not have sensed his own death approaching? The answer was beyond him, and it scared him. But one thing he knew for certain. That rock would've smashed his body completely; it would've killed him, if not for Sasuke.

His friend had saved his life. Again. He didn't have time to come to terms with this realisation. Sasuke screamed.

"Aghhh!" He fell to his knees, his hand pressing over his right eye. It was heavily bleeding.

"Sasuke!" Naruto jumped to help him.

He felt terror pulsing through his veins. Sasuke's eyes weren't supposed to bleed anymore. He had even used the Rinnegan during training, and though it had exhausted him, it hadn't caused him any harm. It scared him that he didn't know what was wrong with his friend.

"No!" Sasuke stopped him, trying to stand up. "That rock… Someone pushed it."

"What?" Naruto didn't want to believe he had missed something so obvious again, but he wouldn't dismiss Sasuke's warning either.

He focused, expanding his chakra, and became almost immediately aware of a foreign presence that was nearby as he located their chakra signature. Whoever it was, they were hiding at the top of the cliff, right over their heads. It was only one person, and their chakra was strong. Stronger than most. But there was something weird in their chakra. Something almost… familiar.

"Sasuke don't." He exclaimed just as Sasuke was preparing himself to attack. "They are no enemies."

"They threw a fucking massive rock to crush you." The Uchiha retorted, incredulity and anger filling his voice. If Naruto had thought that he had angered him before, it was nothing compared to the way he looked now. Even his aura felt darker. "I'll kill them."

It was because of him, Naruto realised. Sasuke was protective of him. If he were to die one day, Sasuke would go mad filled with rage and sorrow. Just as he did after Itachi died. Just as Naruto would, if he lost Sasuke. This knowledge should've scared him. Such level of dependence wasn't healthy. Instead this certainty warmed his heart. He fucking wanted to giggle, that's how happy he felt.

He had finally figured out the identity of the stranger who had attempt to kill him too, which only contributed to amplify his moment of bliss. That chakra could only belong to one person. Naruto was willing to bet his life on it.

"He knew you would push me out of the way." Naruto explained. "But I bet he wasn't expecting Amaterasu. Isn't that right, Jiraya?" He addressed his question to the sky, but it was only a few seconds before a shady figure jumped off from the edge of the precipice and landed just a few feet away from them.

The man nodded at him. "I admit it was neat treat, kid. Though it seems to have taken a heavy toll on your friend…" he said, without bothering with introductions.

Sasuke's body tensed, slighted at the concealed insult. He was ready for an assault. Despite of this, Naruto knew that Sasuke had also recognized the man as Naruto's old master by now, even if they had only met in person one or two times.

His old master. Naruto remembered with perfect clarity the agony of his heart breaking in a thousand pieces after receiving the news of his death. The anger, pain and sorrow that had overcome him with his loss.

It had gotten better with time. The anger had recessed a little after Naruto had witnessed Nagato truly come to regret his actions. In his heart Naruto had known the wherever his sensei was now, he had been reunited with his old student and found peace in his presence. He had imagined them both cheering for him all the way through the war.

The weight of his loss never left it completely though, and yet in time he had come to realise he was no longer grieving for his old sensei, but for himself. Because Naruto missed having him in his life.

And now Jiraya was here.

"Sasuke, please." He begged, not caring about his pride. He couldn't stand a fight between them now; not now, when Sasuke was on his side and Jiraya was alive. Surprisingly Sasuke listened to him this time, dropped his offensive pose and retreated a couple of steps until he was just a few inches behind Naruto.

He was stepping aside, offering Naruto complete authority to lead the talk, and at the same time he adjusted his posture to guard his best friend's flank against any possible thread that might arise. Naruto didn't think that action was necessary, but felt terrible grateful nonetheless.

"I see." Jiraya glanced from one boy to the other. "So you are a real team, after all. How did you know my name, kid?"

"Are you kidding? You're famous!" Naruto answered eagerly. "My sensei in Konoha is huge admirer of you, and he is a great ninja himself."

"Eh, really?" He was obviously very pleased about this.

"Of course." Naruto continued very seriously. "You are the best porno writer in the Five Great Countries, that's what he said. He wouldn't even let me borrow one of your Icha-Icha Paradise books. And he has hundreds of them. He's got to be a bigger pervert than you are, and you wrote the books!"

Jiraya frowned a little and his face's features showed his disappointment. But Naruto couldn't help teasing him. He had been the closest thing he ever had to a father, even if in reality he had filled the role of a grandfather and a mentor, and seeing him here, alive, after he had spent the last four years missing him and mourning his death. The feeling went beyond description.

Besides, it was highly likely he was still in a bit of a shock.

"Well, for your information, kid, I'll let you know that I'm much more than a writer. I'm a famous shinobi, one of the greatest. I even taught the Forth Hokage himself."

Naruto looked at him in awe. "Really?"

"Of course." The man nodded proudly. "Half of his best techniques, he learned from me. That's how awesome I am."

"You must be really strong, then. Even stronger than Kakashi."

"Oh, yes. Your sensei is strong, but I am on a higher level. " He gloated. His gaze focused on Naruto thoughtfully. "You know, you actually remind me a little of the Yondaime. Ummm…" He bit his thump, seemingly coming to a conclusion. "You know what? I've been looking for a worthy student for quite a while. I could train you, if you wanted to come with me. "

Naruto felt the familiar flow of disappointment settling down in his bones. He knew it was unfair of him to judge his Jiraya based on the actions of this Jiraya. This Jiraya barely knew him at all. They hadn't spent years together getting to know and understand each other; they hadn't shared sleepless night running from an angry mob of affronted women, they hadn't fought battles as comrades. This Jiraya hadn't had the chance of growing to love him yet, and in Naruto's mind there was no doubt his Jiraya had loved him just as much as he loved the old pervert. But all those memories belonged to a future that wouldn't come to happen this time.

In the present it hurt to be reminded that this man who had been such an important part of his father's life, had only come to him when there was something to win by doing so. When Naruto had been a baby that could only take and had nothing to offer but unconditional love, during the time in his life that he had needed someone to love him the most, no one had come. He had grown up alone.

It was the mistakes and selfishness of the old generation that had forced Naruto and Sasuke to travel back to the past as the only way to find peace. This knowledge gave Naruto the strength he needed to shallow his heart and confront his beloved sensei.

"Did the Hokage send you after us?" He inquired very seriously.

"You caught on to that, didn't you?" Jiraya looked at him again with what seemed like a lot of grudging respect. "You are a lot brighter than people give you credit for. Yes, the Hokage sent me." He admitted. "But don't think that what I said is untrue You remind me a lot of my old student. With my help, you could become as great as the Yondaime one day."

At his back, Sasuke snorted.

Naruto smiled sadly. He acknowledged that such flattery would've worked with him very well in his youth. Luckily for him, he no longer was that kid who was desperate to prove himself to anyone. He knew his worth as a person, and it had little to do with his relation to the Yondaime.

"I suppose it's not that strange that I remind you of him." He stated calmly. "Many kids tend to favour their fathers. And people say we do look particularly alike."

Jiraya eyes widened in surprise.

"You know?" He hadn't been expected that. "Who told you?"

Naruto shook his head.

"It doesn't matter. This information is irrelevant now." He argued, before getting to the key of the matter. "What's important is that I'm not going back to Konoha, at least for now. And I'm not going off to train with you either, before you offer." He clarified. "It's great that you were my father's sensei, and I'd really like to get to know you one day," he meant it. "But Sasuke and I have something that we must do now. And we have to do it alone."

"And afterwards?"

Naruto shrugged. He didn't know it himself.

"We'll see."

Jiraya sighed regretfully. His usually cheerful features looked now tired and sad. He was an old man, and he had fought and survived two great wars. Looking and his student's son now, he felt the weight of each of those years. But he knew better than anyone that there were things a shinobi must do, even if they rather didn't.

"I can't let you go, Naruto. I need to bring you with me to Konoha. For your own safety. No matter how strong you think you are, there are dangers in this world beyond what you could imagine. And they will come for you. They will kill your friend too, trying to get you." He said, believing every word.

"Hmpf! They can try." Sasuke took a step forward.

"Sasuke!" Naruto raised his hand, stopping him.

"You think you can beat me boy?" Jiraya looked amused. Naruto wasn't sure what the outcome of such a battle would be. Even at their current level, he and Sasuke could take him together. They were an unbeatable team. Each of Naruto's strengths made up for each of Sasuke's weaknesses and vice versa. If Sasuke fought alone it was possible he would lose to Jiraya, but it would still be a long and painful battle for both of them. Or perhaps Sasuke would win, if he used the surprise factor and assaulted Jiraya with his Rinnegan before the Sanin got the chance for a counter attack.

But no matter the outcome, Naruto had no wish to see the battle unravel.

"Stop." He ordered to both of them. "You are not going to fight." He said to Sasuke. "And you are going to let us go." He said to Jiraya.

The old man lifted his eyebrow.

"You seem so sure of that. But you do forget I have orders from the Hokage to bring you back. And believe it or not, I don't want to leave Minato's son to die, even if he is a bit of an idiot who thinks he and his friend can survive by themselves. "

Naruto smiled softly. "It's good to know you care. But you don't need to worry. I won't die. Neither of us will."

"Is that so?" Jiraya look at him, carefully analysing Naruto's body stance and his chakra signature and, for the first time, he could almost believe in his words. "You still haven't answered my first question thought. What makes you think I will let you go without a fight?"

Naruto closed his eyes for one second, and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, his bright blue eyes, so similar to those of Minato, looked straight at Jiraya. There was no fear in those eyes, nor hesitation. Naruto's eyes were full of resolve, understanding and love, and they were wise beyond his years.

"You will let me go because you owe me." He stated without a trace of doubt in his voice. "You owe me, and you owe my father. I know he named you my godfather, and he counted on you to take care of me if one day he was missing. You gave him your word that you would look out for me if that day ever came. But you didn't. I grew up alone, hated and miserable; all the things that my father didn't want for me."

At this point Jiraya could no longer hold his gaze, and he had to lower his eyes to the ground in shame.

"It's alright." Naruto assured him. "I think I understand now, why everybody did what they did." It had taken him years, but he was finally at peace with his childhood. "And I forgive you for your role in it. But you still have a debt to my father. And if you want to be able to look him in the eyes the next time you see him, you will let me go now."

A long minute of silence followed his plea. Not even Sasuke said a word. Finally Jiraya gathered enough courage to look the kid in the eye again.

"You father gave his life to protect our village. He would've wanted you stay in Konoha." He argued.

"Yes." From their brief time together, Naruto knew that Jiraya was speaking the truth. "But he would also respect my choice. He would've wanted me to find my own path, and would've hoped that one day this path would bring me back to Konoha."

By the Devil! The kid was right. That's exactly what his old pupil would've said. Jiraya could easily image Minato using those very words. He couldn't by the life of him figure out how the kid had gotten such a deep and precise insight to his father's inner thoughts and beliefs. But Jiraya had been beaten in his own game.

He had thought that mentioning his similarities to the Forth would be the key to bring the kid back willingly. And at the end, it was in the name of the Forth that he would be forced to let Naruto go. Because he was right. He had failed to uphold Minato's final wish and as such, he had always been aware that he owed him something, but he had never expected that his debt to Minato would be collected so soon and in the form of his son no less.

"Isn't there anything I can do to make you change your mind?"

Naruto shook his head. "I'm sorry, Ero-sennin."

The man smiled sadly at the nickname. That was something that Kushina used to call him. The kid-. No. Naruto. Naruto was a worthy son of his parents.

"Then let the gods be my witnesses that my debt to Minato has finally been fulfilled." He vowed solemnly.

"Thank you." Naruto said, meaning it. "I hope our paths will cross again."

Jiraya nodded once. "I hope so too, kid." His gaze moved to Sasuke for a moment, before returning to Naruto almost immediately. "When the news of your whereabouts reach them, those wearing black cloaks with red clouds on them will come for you. Some may be even stronger shinobi than me. You will need as many trustworthy allies as you can get if you plan to survive them." Naruto nodded, thankful for the warning. Jiraya looked at him one more time, the son of his dearest student, before lifting his gaze to the cliff from which he had arrived. "Do take care of yourself, Naruto." And with these words, he jumped and disappeared from their sight, leaving the two children behind.

* * *

 _This is it. What do you think? I hope you have enjoyed the chapter. I know many of you wanted Itachi to make his first appearance, but I'm afraid you'll have to wait for the next chapter for that. Spoilers, Spoilers… XD._

 _I think it was quite logical the Hokage tried all his cards before giving in to Sasuke's ultimatum, and Jiraya was his best bet to bring Naruto back to the village. However he underestimated the bond between our two favourite ninjas._

 _Did you like Sasuke and Naruto bickering before the sanin's arrival? If you notice, Naruto is quite often thinking about sex or sex related stuff. But he is a teenager! He should be around 18-19? At his age, most guys I know were always thinking about sex! And I think he found a way to tease Sasuke make him blush!_

 _Well, I love the bickering/flirting, so we'll go back to that pretty soon. I really hope you've enjoyed this chapter, so please let me know your opinions about it. What you like best, what you didn't…_

 _The next chapter it's taking me a while to write. I'd say it's almost ready, but I'm redoing it over and over again, never quite satisfied. So you know, if you want it ready for next weekend, do leave me a review. Every time I get one, I feel like writing again for a while ;-)_


	7. Chapter 7

_Hi Guys. First of all, apologies._ _ **I made a mistake yesterday posting a Yugioh chapter instead of this one**_ _(thank you to for letting me know), and then it was too late and I was quite sleepy so I simply delete it. But here it is, chapter 8._

 _I have to warn you that my beta Caia is on holidays, so this chapter will have more mistakes than usual. I didn't want to make you wait another week to read it, not after all the wonderful reviews you left me (they cheer me up so much every time I read them!), but it's up to you to read it. Once Caia is back and I get the edited version, I'll repost this chapter again, so you might want to wait for that._

 _For those who want to go ahead, well, I hope you'll enjoy it!_

 ** _PS? I'm definitely changing this fic's name to "Because now I know, all my roads lead to you."_** I'll do it in a chapter or two. Just letting everybody know to avoid confussion later.

* * *

 **Chapter 7**

 _Konoha; in the Hokage's Tower…_

The Hokage finished reading Jiraya's letter with a frown and a few new worry lines on his forehead. He could hardly believe it. The Sanin had failed to retrieve Naruto. Jiraya had located the boy and confronted him, and yet he had not been able to retrieve him. He assured Hiruzen that Naruto was healthy and in good spirits, but he also wrote that the boy had made his mind up and nobody would be able to persuade him otherwise. He added that it was probably in his best interested to let him be.

Best interest for whom? The Hokage wondered ironically for a minute.

These were the worst news he could have expected, and at the worst possible time too. The Chuunin exams were now in the final phase. The first combat, Nara Shikamaru versus Sabaku no Temari, had taken place that very morning with an outcome that favoured the Sand. Hyuga Neji had defeated Doso Kinuta easily after that.

While usually a victory for his village would make him joyous, this time the Hokage was finding it difficult to stop worrying long enough to celebrate it properly. Strange events had been happening in the last few weeks. Strange and dangerous. He would said it had all started with Sasuke's visit to his office and consequent desertion from the village.

In just one day, Konoha had lost two major assets: the last Uchiha and the Jinchuriki. But that had been only the beginning.

A month ago, during the second stage of the Chuunin exams, his old disciple Orochimaru had been spotted in the Forest of Death; and soon after, three _genin's_ bodies had been found horribly mutilated. It wasn't difficult to guess a correlation between these two events, but he still didn't know what had brought Orochimaru back to Konoha, or what had made him so angry as to pay it off with three helpless children.

A week later, in the preliminary combats, everybody had been shocked when the youngest genin of the Sand, the most powerful weapon of his village, had refused to fight, giving the victory by default to a fuming Rock Lee. Hiruzen had heard enough rumours to discern that such behaviour was terribly out of character for the Sabaku no Jinchuriki. And the shock in the face of his allies had been honest, which only left him with more questions.

On top of all that, since Sasuke's and Naruto's departure, both Kakashi and Danzo hadn't stopped asking questions, if each with very different concerns in mind. He had done as much as possible to cover their desertion, making up a story about Jiraya requesting the boys for an special mission to gather information. That had finally shut them up for a while.

Of course that lie was only believable for a limited amount of time, and as long as it was Jiraya himself who brought the boys back to the village with him, effectively corroborating his story with his actions, which Hiruzen had expected him to do without too much trouble. After all, they were a pair of over confident teenagers, and he, one of the Legendary Sanin. As clever as Sasuke was, and he had indeed proved himself to be clever, he didn't stand a chance.

Obviously, the Hokage had been wrong to think so.

Naruto and Sasuke were still wandering freely, Orochimaru was hiding somewhere nearby, and the Sand was planning something. Now Jiraya had deserted him, and if Danzo found out the truth about the missing kids, Hiruzen trembled in fear imaging what he would do. It seemed as if each and every one of his biggest mistakes over the last twenty years had come back to bite him in the ass at the same time.

He wouldn't say it was undeserved, for he may very well deserve it, but in his defence he would say that he had been more than willing to pass along the Hokage's hat –and the responsibilities that came with it–, to a younger shinobi, when it became obvious that his time had passed.

Minato would've handle matters very differently, and it was very likely that under his rule events such as the Uchiha's massacre wouldn't have taken place. But Minato had died and Hiruzen had been once again the only one left fit to lead the village. That had always been his first priority. To lead and protect the village. It still was. And the village needed his jinchuriki. For the good of the village, once again Hiruzen was forced to do something he had sworn to himself he wouldn't. He would ask this man for help a second time.

He only hoped he was still loyal enough to answer his plea. Kami knew that Hiruzen wouldn't blame him if he wasn't.

* * *

 _Somewhere in the Land of Waterfall…_

The mission was easy. The two clouded figures watched their pray from the shadows. The woman was beautiful. She had bright red hair that fell to her waist like a waterfall. Her eyes were emerald green, her lips were full, and her facial features delicate and sensual. Her laugh was soft and warm, and when she made her way around the room her movement displayed uncharacteristic grace.

She wasn't particularly tall. If anything, her height was slightly lower than average. However her waist was very slim, her breasts were big and tasteful, and her hips voluptuous, all which made her extremely pleasing to the senses. She had the face of an angel and type of body that could lead most men to madness, or redeemed a Lord his subservient slave.

Unfortunately for her, the man and his partner were far from most men. Sometimes the man wondered if they still qualified as men at all. They were killers. Murderers. And they were not deterred for something as insignificant as beauty… or clemency for an unborn baby.

Even though her body didn't show signals of it yet, the woman was pregnant. Only five or six weeks along. She was carrying a growing baby in her belly, and that baby, along with her unparalleled beauty, were the reasons the woman would die today.

Killing her was their mission, and neither the man nor his partner were men who questioned their orders.

In company of the woman there were three ladies in waiting, dressed almost as elegantly as her, if of far inferior beauty, and two samurais standing solemnly at the room's door. Those two were only a distraction though. The real security was better hidden. The man smiled to himself and shared a quick glance with his partner.

"I counted seventeen. Five in the garden, tree on the roof, four next to the entrance, two in the kitchen and three in the rooms next to her."

The younger man didn't return his gaze, his eyes fixed on the front. "Eighteen." He corrected him. "One of the ladies in waiting is a highly trained kunoichi."

The man nodded slowly, accepting his partner's words as true without a fuss. "Shall we divide them, then? Half for you and half for me?"

The man shook his head. "We'll wait until night-time. Meanwhile I'll cast a genjutsu in those outside the house."

"And then?"

"I'll dispose of the kunoichi and the target. You take care of the guards inside the house in case they realise what is happening."

"Are you sure?" For the first time, the man seemed to question the instructions of his partner. "You know I can take care of the women. It won't bother me."

"I know. But our employer ordered discretion. My jutsu is more silent than yours. If I kill them fast enough we can be out of the house before any of the guards realise what has happened."

The older man let a quiet laugh escape. "If you are sure..."

His younger partner nodded just once, not adding anything else to the matter. His face wore an emotionless, almost bored expression, his body language was calm and controlled, and his heartbeat remained constant. He had just volunteered to assassinate a pregnant woman and her protector.

If anybody else had witnessed that scene, they would think him a monster. A cruel beast with no conscience and no heart. He, however, wasn't anybody else. He had spent one too many years in the company of his partner to be fooled by the man's cold demeanour.

They waited until an hour past midnight.

The two samurais at the door had left their post, and most of the guards inside the house had retired to their quarters. The shinobis placed outside the house had doubled their number since nightfall but they were already under the effects of his partner's genjutsu. And their last obstacle, the kunoichi that guarded the woman posing as one of her ladies in waiting had finally fallen asleep in a bed near hers.

Every piece on the board was now in place. All that was left was for them to accomplish the mission.

"Are you sure?" The man asked again, before his partner could make a move towards the house. "I can still jump in there and disposed of the kunoichi and the target."

"You underestimate her." He replied. "Subtlety is not your forte. There is a big change that she will sense you coming and alert the guards."

His words, rather than offend him, amused him. "Perhaps. But it isn't as if you couldn't take them."

The younger man acknowledged his words with a small nod, but dismissed them quickly. "It may still take too long. They hired us for a quiet job. Our employer wanted to avoid a commotion."

The man did not raise another complain. Despite what people tended to think, he was smart enough to know when to leave a matter alone. And it wasn't like it was of any importance to him anyway. "As you say." He complied, reaching for the sword.

And yet, he couldn't prevent the small laugh that escaped from his lips. "You'll never change, even if it kills you." He commented amusedly. "Always trying not to waste lives, Itachi."

The mission was carefully executed afterwards, and the result was flawless. Kisame and Itachi exited the house barely two minutes after they had finished their previous conversation. Behind them, they left only one body to be found: a pregnant woman with a slit throat, murdered in her sleep.

The two men didn't congratulate each other. In silence, they resumed their march. The payment had been collected beforehand, and their employer, the wife of the dead woman's lover, had stated in very clear terms that she expected not to see them ever again, under threat of death. Her threat was meaningless, as the Akatsuki always moved on to the next target once a mission was completed

As a precaution, they jumped from tree to tree for a few hours until their target's location was left far behind them. Then they slowed their pace.

"There is a civilian village a few miles from here." Kisame broke the silence by the time sunrise was approaching. The sky was no longer dark, and the birds had started singing their melody to greet the morning. "We could stop there to catch some breakfast. Maybe some take away lunch."

Itachi seemed to consider this for a few moments; then nodded.

"Very well." He said. "But I need a few minutes first. Wait here."

He didn't wait to see if his instructions were being followed. He jumped to a tree, then another, and finally he disappeared from sight. Kisame watched him go, unperturbed, and after a few seconds sat down on the ground with his back against a tree. Itachi never made him wait too long and once he came back, they could go to the village and get a proper breakfast for a change. All in all, it was a pretty good way to start the day.

Itachi slowed his pace after a mile or so, and stopped completely next to a little stream. The water was ice cold, but it felt good against his skin. The cold was one of the few things that could still make him feel alive instead of like a walking corpse, if barely, and he appreciated the feeling.

He washed his hands and then his face thoroughly, in an effort to erase any trace of blood that might have stuck to his skin. More often than not this was an unnecessary precaution, as he had enough skill as an assassin not to get splattered with the blood of his victims, but it had become somewhat of an habit – to wash his hands and his face every time he killed someone – and it might prove useful one day.

His thoughts drifted towards his elusive partner. While he understood the reasoning behind Kisame's words and actions during their mission – volunteering himself to kill the pregnant woman so Itachi wouldn't have to live with the weight of her death on his conscience –, and even felt grateful to certain extent, such an offer had been unnecessary.

A pregnant woman was not better or worse than the rest of the people that Itachi had killed, and her death didn't trouble him particularly. He had killed many innocents before, many people who didn't deserve to die. He had killed children and he had killed babies. He had literally cut his parents' bodies in half, and had figuratively shattered his little brother's heart.

Compared to that, killing a pregnant woman was easy.

Besides, once the price had been set over her head, she was going to die anyway. Nobody could prevent that. And allowing his partner to complete the task to save himself the judgement of his conscience would've been not only useless, but cowardly as well. Itachi was many things, most of them bad, but he was not a coward.

Regardless of this, Kisame's intentions had been good. He was killer, much like Itachi himself, but he was also an honest man and he wasn't unnecessarily cruel. Itachi considered him a more honest person than any of his old ANBU comrades in the village had been. The irony of this fact didn't escape him.

But this train of thought was useless – seeing as it wouldn't lead him anywhere –, so Itachi quickly stopped it right there. He took another couple of sips from the stream, and then dried his mouth with the back of his hand, standing up. His head was cleared now; his mind in order again. He was ready to go back to his partner.

He would go back to Kisame and then they would go to the near village and enjoy some breakfast together. If he was lucky enough, he might even find a restaurant that served Dango.

As a child Itachi had loved Dango. It had been his favourite since he was a toothless toddler, to the point that after his first try, he had refused to eat anything else for a week, if his mother was to be believed.

Nowadays he didn't enjoy the flavour as much as the reminder of a time when eating that particular sweet had made him happy. The familiar taste brought back old memories, memories that he had otherwise supressed under layers of determination and guilt.

Dango reminded him of the bright smile on an innocent young girl's face, the first time they sat to eat it together in front of a river. It reminded him of the smell of his mother's hair while she worked in the kitchen, and of the kindness in his father's voice as they walked along Konoha's streets, and of the funny way his little brother had grimaced after Itachi offered him his first taste when he was two.

Although, through his actions, Itachi had forsaken any right to these memories five years ago, it was nice to be reminded of what happiness had felt it like, even if it was just for a brief moment. With this hope in his mind, he turned his back to the stream and jumped onto one of the nearest tree branches.

He was about to jump to the next one when his senses detected something peculiar. It was a chakra signature, one that didn't belong to a human, but that was strangely familiar to him. One that he hadn't felt in years.

For a second, Itachi questioned his accuracy at reading this signature, but he knew his senses had never failed him before. He trusted them with his life. This chakra belonged to Perla, the ninja cat that had acted as a link between his clan and the Hokage many years ago. It was clear it was her. Now the questions were, what she was doing so far from home, and what had brought her to cross paths with Itachi.

Itachi's mind worked quickly to solve these puzzles, just seconds before the cat entered his flied of vision.

The ninja-cat greeted him with a nod, quickly eyeing him to confirm his identity, and slowed down until finally she stopped crawling a few feet away. "Uchiha Itachi-kun." She addressed him.

Nobody had added the "kun" after his name in more than half a decade. It shocked him for a second, but Itachi quickly disguised this reaction. "Perla-san." He returned her greeting with a straight face.

"I have an important message for you from the Hokage." Formalities over, the ninja-cat lost no time, confirming at once Itachi's assumptions and opening the door to a few new questions.

The Hokage had rigorously avoided any kind of communication with him for the last five years of his life. Every three months, Itachi had punctually delivered the most relevant information concerning the Akatsuki to his contact within the village, all along without revealing his identity, and not once, not even when the information had been extremely precarious for Konoha, the Hokage made an attempt to contact him.

Contacting Itachi meant endangering his cover as a double agent, which potentially could lead to revelling his true loyalty to Konoha, which, regardless of what it meant for Itachi, it would prove to be fatal for the Hogake and his council of elders.

If the truth about his clan ever came to light, it was highly likely that most of Konoha would rise in revolt against the government. It was a fact that the Hokage would lose the trust of his people, and the village would lose its moral high ground in front of all the other nations, with dire economic consequences. Hiruzen would never risk letting this happen, which left only a few possibilities as for why he was making contact now, and all of them were extremely worrisome.

In all honesty, Itachi would rather not know. He had no wish to hear the message that the Hogake had sent him, and rather stay out of whatever business was tormenting the old man. He was tired; very, very tired. With every day that went by, it was becoming more and more difficult to remember the person that he had been once.

His loyalty to Konoha remained unshaken, but he no longer remembered the reasons that had spawned such loyalty. He was still loyal because that loyalty had become ingrained in him, and he had lost so many pieces of himself already, that he could not afford to lose one more. Not if he wanted to keep living. And he couldn't die yet. Not yet.

Thoughts of his death led him back to the most likely reason that had led Hiruzen to contact him after five years of strict silence. Sasuke. Something had happened to his little brother. Itachi hoped to be wrong. Unfortunately for him, he rarely was.

He held the gaze of the ninja-cat as he said, steadily: "I will listen to your message."

* * *

 _Hi guys! I hope you enjoyed it, despite the lack of a beta for this chapter. As I said once Caia is back from her holidays I'll repost it again, so you can read a clean version of it._

 _Well, what do you think? I'm very anxious about your opinion about this chapter, especially about my characterization of Itachi. Despite not been a particularly long chapter, it took me ages to finish it, and I'm still struggling to write Itachi first scenes when he meets out two favourite boys. I need help!_

 _I imagine many of you will be shocked at my choice for this chapter. But the things is, Itachi is part of a criminal organisation whose members all work as a contract killers. He may be a double spy, and a good person at heart, but he has killed people, many people, and many who had done nothing to deserve it._

 _Even before he worked for the Akatsuki, he was AMBU. And AMBU are also contract killers. Actually most shinobis are (that's what they were in history), and the show say so too in a few occasions, though often it tries to disguise this truth for us viewers to make more palatable. Young shinobis (like Kakashi or Itachi) are child soldiers, which all the psychological repercussions this have in the human psyche. They can never grow up to be well balance, grounded adults, and they actually should function worse that they do in the series (despite all their peculiarities and queerness)._

 _Itachi is a pacifist at heart, thus he carries an unspeakable amount of guilt and self-hatred for his actions. I think no other character in the manga hates himself as much as Itachi does (he starts planning his own dead at his beloved brother's hands since he is thirteen, perhaps earlier than that). But he also is a pragmatic. He knows as long as the world exist, as long as humans are humans, there will be winners and losers, corrupted systems, cruelty and selfishness, and innocents who are killed or die of natural causes. He doesn't at any moment try to change this reality (because he knows it's impossible to change human nature)._

 _He is a walking contradiction. Smarter than Shikamaru, more gifted than Minato, the most brilliant strategist in the series. And yet he struggles understanding the simplest emotions that make people click. He always sees the biggest picture, and thus quite often the individual escapes his notice. He loves the people, not the person, one could say to describe him. He is not an idealist, he is too intelligent for that. He struggles a lot to connect to people. They bore him (we can see this clearly in the last anime episodes about his early life), and he doesn't really understand them._

 _He also has a very bad grasp on normal human emotions (otherwise he would've realised from the beginning what killing his parents and showing it to Sasuke, taunting him and telling him how much Itachi hated him, would mean for his brother's sanity and mental development)._

 _Seeing as I'm nowhere close to be half as intelligent as Itachi is, writing him without impoverishing his character is proving to be really, really difficult. I think Kishi managed because Itachi_ _only_ _appeared very sparsely in the manga (still, kudos for him for creating my fav character!)._

 _So I really need your input. Any insight you have in the character, please share it with me. I'm totally stuck in the next chapter, writing the first meeting between Itachi and his brother (and Naruto, of course), but I never quite satisfied about what I write._

 _Let me know of what you think of his characterization and scenes in this chapter, anything I should change to keep him IC, and any ideas you might have for the next chapter. I will really appreciate it!_

 _Thank you as well for your support till now. Every time I read a new comment I'm smiling for hours… My boss is starting to wonder what's going on with me XD_

 _See you soon, guys! Mata ne!_

* * *

 ** _PS: As I said, my beta couldn't help me with this chapter yet. I'd be very grateful if any native speaker could give me their opinion about my general skill level. The things that I should improve, and especially the things that stand up the most and that a native speaker would never do. Thank you, guys!_**


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8.**

The encounter with Jiraya had visibly affected Naruto's previously cheerful spirit. Although the meeting should be counted as a victory, seeing as he had persuaded the Sanin to abandon his mission to bring them back to Konoha without resorting to violence, Naruto was finding it difficult to shake the feeling of sadness that had taken hold of him after watching his old master walk away.

He was aware that this sadness was not completely rational, as this time –unlike the last one–, Jiraya wasn't in any kind of immediate danger, and Naruto was sure he would see his teacher again one day. However their relationship would never be the same as it had been. All the moments they had shared were now only a part of his memories, and despite the happiness of seeing the old pervert alive, Naruto was grieving for the loss of these memories.

Sasuke didn't try to cheer him up and instead gave him some space to grieve. It had been different when Naruto was missing his friends; after all, it had been his choice to leave them, and despite his friend's explanation about his motives, Sasuke was aware of the big role he had played in such a decision. But his was the opposite situation.

Naruto didn't choose to leave Jiraya. Jiraya had been dead for years by the time the blonde decided to leave everything behind and start anew, rewriting history in the process. If anything, coming back to the past was a way to guarantee he would not die a second time, at least not the way he had in their version of the future. But to see his teacher again, only to realise that he wasn't the person Naruto had come to love growing up, in a way it must've felt like losing him a second time.

Sasuke had plenty of experience dealing with loss, and had learned that grieving, allowing oneself to feel the weight of the loss, was a necessary step in the healing process. So he allowed Naruto time to come to terms with their new reality, and made sure to be there as a silent support for his friend.

After some thought, they both decided that their best alternative was to return to the Land of Earth and find some place to replenish their supplies.

The first couple of days of the journey, they travelled quickly during the first hours of the morning, when the temperature was milder, both of them eager to leave the arid rock dessert behind; then caught some sleep in the afternoons, and resumed the march in the evenings until midnight.

The fourth day, when the landscape had started to change and a few trees could already be seen along then road, they took to training in the evenings instead. The physical exercise proved to be a good idea, imbuing them with new life and vitality. It became routine.

A couple of days after that, Naruto encouraged Sasuke to test the Mangekyou Sharingan in a fight against him and Kurama, despite the fox grumpiness at this idea. Unfortunately, the outcome was no different to the previous one. Sasuke ended up on the floor, his head dizzy and his right eye heavily bleeding.

"I don't understand." Naruto said, kneeling next to him. "You used your Rinnegan during training and this didn't happen. It exhausted you, but that's only because your chakra reserves are much lower now. The Sharingan shouldn't-"

"It's different." Sasuke interrupted him, accepting his hand to stand up. "I only have the Rinnegan because of Hagoromo. He sealed it on my chakra, and it became part of my spiritual energy – my life force, my memories, and my mind. Those are the things that Kurama carried with himself to the pass. The Sharingan is purely physical. It belongs to this body."

"But you still have the Mangekyou…" Naruto pointed out.

"That's because I still have the memories. The Mangekyou Sharingan is awakened through trauma, when you watch someone who is dear to you die. I did. Even if this body didn't, my mind still has those memories. I remember my brother dying, I remember the last words he said to me. That's why I can still use it." He explained.

"Can you stop it from bleeding?"

Sasuke shook his head. "The price of the Mangekyou is blindness. There is only one way to stop it."

Naruto knew this already. "Your brother's eyes."

"Yes. When I transplanted Itachi's eyes into mine, I achieved the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan. But those eyes were lost in the past, with our bodies." He sounded bitter about it, even if he had suspected something like that might happen.

Naruto looked at him worryingly.

Sasuke rolled his eyes.

"Don't worry too much. I always knew this was a real possibility. It might even work in my favour…"

"What? Ending up half blind is something good?" He uttered sarcastically. Naruto couldn't forget the fact that it had been his idea to come to the pass. If Sasuke lost his sight because of it… "There must be something we can do. Even if we don't want your brother's eyes, we still can-." He lost track of his words. "Oh!" He got now. "You want to do an exchange."

Sasuke smirked at him, his trademark look of superiority back in his face.

"It should work. Even if it's only one eye I can give him. He's good enough to make up for the loss of the other one without much trouble."

"I see." Naruto smiled, and for a moment he felt so bloody happy that Sasuke had gotten a new chance to make things right with his brother. They both deserved it. "That's a very good idea, Sasuke."

Sasuke didn't use the Mangekyou again after that incident, but they kept training for a few hours in the evenings. Slowly, their bodies were getting stronger. Their synchrony was flawless.

The morning of the eighth day of the journey, they arrived back to the small village where they had stayed the first time, back when they were still waiting for the clones to vanish in Konoha. To make things easier, they resumed their fake identities, disguising themselves as two middle aged brothers from Takigakure, and rented a room in the same Ryokan as last time.

The young receptionist, dressed up in a pink, purple and blue kimono that made her look extremely sweet and pretty, remembered them from last time and welcomed them back with a fond smile. Naruto complimented her in her new attire, making her blush, kissed her hand as goodbye, and promised to come downstairs to chat with her again in the next few days.

"You weren't as foolish as to tell her who you are, were you, idiot?" Sasuke questioned him once they were out of her earshot.

"What?" The question took Naruto completely by surprise. "Of course not. Why the hell would you think that?"

"You seemmed friendly." Sasuke answered shortly without looking at him, as they finally reached their room and closed the door behind them. The room looked exactly the same as their previous one, despite this one being on the highest floor of the building.

The blonde threw his backpack to the floor and glared sharply at Sasuke. "So what? Not everyone can be a bastard like you. I'm friendly. I like people."

"Yes, I'm well aware of that." Snorted Sasuke, ignoring his glare.

Naruto scowled, offended, and felt the familiar rise of anger inside him. But he refused to take the bait this time. He was too tired for fighting. They had been traveling for near two weeks in the fucking desert, he was still dealing with the emotions that his encounter with Jiraya had aroused in him, and Sasuke was a complete bastard; as simple as that. He would inquire about the reasons behind his bad mood another time.

"I'm off to bed." He informed his companion without bothering to look at him to see his reaction. "Wake me up for dinner."

Not wasting time, Naruto got in his futon and waited for a couple of seconds for Sasuke's angry retort. Mildly relieved when the other didn't reply anything, the blonde closed his eyes and pulled the covers over his head. He was truly exhausted. It wasn't long before he fell blissfully asleep.

Sasuke woke him up when the sky started to change from pale blue to shades of orange and pink, throwing a few pillows at his head and muttering a quiet "dobe, up!", right before entering the bathroom in search of a towel.

Feeling considerably more rested than before, Naruto let the slight pass. He rubbed his eyes with his hands, yawned, and spent a few seconds lazily admiring the beautiful sunset through the window. The futon was warm and comfy, and he had no desire to unwrap his body from the covers just yet.

"Can we just get some take away?" He suggested Sasuke a bit later when he walked in the room again.

"Tired still?"

Naruto shrugged and didn't answer.

His eyes travelled over Sasuke's naked upper body. It seemed like Sasuke had spent a few hours bathing in the Ryokan's private Onsen, and had only returned to their room just in time to wake him up. His hair was still wet and unbrushed, despite his best efforts to dry it properly with a hand towel. His lower body was wrapped in a long white towel, but a few drops of water could be seen on his arms and pectoral muscles, slipping down to his abdomen and lower.

The sight wasn't particularly striking. The man Sasuke was impersonating was close to his forties; he had dark brown hair and a stern face. His facial structure was wide, his nose somewhat flat, and he had slanted black eyes and a beard. He was tall and slender. He wasn't bad looking per se, and in fact it was most likely he had been considered quite handsome in his youth. But he wasn't the kind of man Naruto felt usually attracted to. And yet, he couldn't help staring.

"I had thought we could go and get some ramen for dinner…" Sasuke commented nonchalantly, leaving the hair towel carelessly over the sofa, unaware of the scrutiny he was under. "But if you are feeling tired…"

 _Ramen_ was the magic word. Naruto blinked a couple of times, as the meaning of Sasuke's words reached him, and quickly put an end to his daydreaming.

"No!" He exclaimed urgently. "I'm not tired at all. I don't know what I was thinking." He chuckled nervously. "Of course we can go to have some ramen, Sasuke."

"Hmpf." His friend rolled his eyes, turning his face away as to hide the way his lips had curled up into a subtle smile.

They ordered dinner in Naruto's favourite restaurant. He asked for two extra-large bowls of ramen, one of meat and one of fish, while Sasuke got a plate of honey and cinnamon chicken with rice, and a tomato salad as accompaniment. Naruto made a face at Sasuke's choice – in his opinion tomatoes were only edible as an ingredient for pasta or pizza –, and jumped to eat his ramen rather loudly.

Sasuke rolled his eyes at Naruto's lack of manners, and proceed to eat his food in a much more refined way.

Naruto finished the first bowl very quickly, and then he took his time eating the second one. He wanted to savour the flavour and to make it last. Unfortunately it couldn't last forever. He finished the last sip and let out a burp of satisfaction. But then he frowned, catching sight of Sasuke's half-eaten salad.

"Aren't you gonna finish that?"

Sasuke shook his head. He had already deposited his chopsticks in the corner of his plate, a sign that he was done with his meal. "I'm not very hungry." He excused himself.

Naruto didn't believe him. Usually it wouldn't be odd that Sasuke ate only part of his meal, leaving the rest, as he had never shared Naruto's big appetite. He ate little and mostly out of obligation, as a means to keep his body strong, which was the reason why he was so skinny.

But Sasuke loved tomatoes. "Like" wasn't enough to describe the way he felt about this fruit. He had a serious passion for this fruit. Back when they were children, Naruto used to joke that tomatoes were the only food Sasuke could swallow because they were just as sour as his mood. He had only seen Sasuke leave any amount of tomatoes uneaten on two occasions before.

"You are worried." He noticed.

Sasuke arched an eyebrow, not confirming or denying anything. "What makes you thing that?"

Naruto grinned mischievously. "A true ninja never reveals his tricks, remember? But I can tell, so don't bother telling me otherwise."

His friend acknowledged his words and didn't try it, but he didn't elaborate the cause of his worry either. "It's nothing important."

Naruto stared at him for a moment, trying to read his expression. It was difficult, as his facial features didn't give anything away, but Sasuke made the mistake of holding his gaze. There were few things that his eyes could hide from Naruto these days.

"You can tell me." He insisted. "I won't break."

"You were worried as well." His friend responded back.

Naruto shook his head. "No, I wasn't worried. I was… I was having a hard time coming to terms with a few things, I guess. Mourning, saying goodbye to an old friend." He tried to explain. "And I'm not saying that I'm already over it, but… I'll get there. I just need a little time." Sasuke nodded, accepting the truth of his words. "It doesn't mean you need to protect me though, not over this. Tell me what worries you." He asked again, softly.

"I was thinking of Itachi." Sasuke admitted, after holding his friend's gaze for a few seconds, trying to discern his current emotional strength. Satisfied with what he found, he elaborated. "It's been three weeks since my clone told the Hokage where to find us, and he hasn't shown himself yet. The Hokage sent the old Sanin instead."

"So you are worried he might not have contacted you brother after all."

"It's a possibility." He admitted, if reluctantly.

"You know either way we'll find him, right?" Naruto reassured him, supressing the impulse of reaching for his hand.

"I know." Sasuke didn't doubt it. It might take them longer than he had hoped, but they _would_ find him. "But what if…" He stopped himself, unable to finish that sentence. His gaze flew back to Naruto, as if taking comfort in the sight of his blue eyes. "What if we are too late?" He asked, clutching his teeth. "What if he's already sick? Tobi told me he had been sick for years, before he fought with me. An untreatable disease."

Naruto closed his eyes for a second, finally aware of the fear that had been tormenting Sasuke. It wasn't a very farfetched possibility, and there was little he could do or say to calm his friend's anxiety. Still, Naruto'd be damned if he let something as small as an illness to destroy his best friend's life again.

"Listen to me, Sasuke." He said gravely. "I can't tell you that Itachi isn't sick, or that he won't get sick in the future. We have no way of knowing that. But you know everything we've been through. We've done the impossible, you and I. We survived a fucking war, defeated a freaking goddess and woke up the world from eternal sleep. And I even managed to bring you back to Konoha. And now we are here, against all odds. We won't let your brother die. I might not know how yet, but we'll find a way to save him if we have to. Believe me." He vowed.

Perhaps it was the certainty that could be heard in his friend's words, or the strength of his blue eyes, bright and clear when they held his gaze, what made Sasuke's lips curl up into a tiny smile. "That's not the worst speech you've ever given, dobe." He joked. "And I suppose you did manage to bring me back to the village. Few things seemed more impossible at the time."

His fears didn't disappear completely, but there was little he could do about them until he found his brother. And Naruto was right. They had come too far to be defeated for something as common as an illness. He wasn't going to let his brother slip through his fingers again, not this time.

Soon after, the waitress brought them their bill and they exited the restaurant, choosing to take the long way back to the hotel. The night air was warm and pleasant, the moon three quarters full in the sky. A few kids were still playing in the town's main square, while a small group of old women and men had brought their chairs outside their houses and were placidly chatting under the stars.

Just before they began to walk, Naruto took out his wallet and offered some money to a homeless man that sat on the ground a few steps away from the restaurant's main entrance. The man didn't reach for the money, so Naruto simply deposited it on the floor next to him under Sasuke's careful scrutiny.

"What?" He asked a bit later, sensing the weight of his friends' gaze on him.

"Nothing." Sasuke said, looking away.

The next day they had breakfast in the small Ryokan's buffet room and then they decided to spend the morning relaxing in the public Onsen. It seemed like most of the hotel's guests had had the same idea, because the outside pool was already half full by the time Naruto and Sasuke got there.

The wild landscape surrounding the Onsen was truly breath-taking, and the water, enriched with several minerals to smooth their skins, felt incredibly nice against their bodies. Having other people there also helped Naruto to keep his thoughts at bay, when Sasuke leaned his head against the edge of the pool, closed his eyes, and allowed the harmony of the trees and wild plants to envelope him.

Naruto eyed the crowd distractedly. In one corner, under the shadow of the long maple trees' branches and leaves, a couple sat close to each other, lazily kissing on the lips when they thought no one was looking. A small group of young teenage girls were stealing glances at them and quietly laughing not too far from them. In another corner, a few middle aged men were laying down with most of their bodies submerged in the water.

A family of tourists came to join them several minutes later, when Naruto began to feel bored. The woman was pregnant, perhaps five or six months along, and the man didn't look particularly happy holding the hand of a seven or eight year old boy. At the first chance he got, the boy broke free from his father's hold, ran to the water and jumped rather loudly into the Onsen.

The water splashed everywhere. A few birds chirped angrily from the near leaves, and took off to the sky. Naruto watched them fly away. The middle aged men and the couple glared at the boy and his dad, who was quick to apologize profusely. One of the men said something rude, and to the poor husband's dismay his wife replied something equally rude on his behalf.

"See?" Sasuke said cheerfully to his right, ignoring the small commotion that followed afterwards. Naruto turned his head to look at him, his eyes questioning. "Kids can come into the Onsen, after all."

The blonde rolled his eyes, not dignifying that with an answer.

In the afternoon they had a small lunch, and then they went grocery shopping. They needed food, water and a few other supplies for when they resumed their journey again. Naruto also bought a book for himself, once he was sure that Sasuke was busy admiring several collections of knives in one of the attached stores to notice it. He paid for the latest issue of the Icha-Icha Paradise's series, and quickly put it in his backpack for a later time.

The town's main streets were busy, as was common on the weekends. Many tourists were visiting the small market that opened its doors every Saturday and Sunday, not far from the river. The pregnant woman and the noisy kid from the Onsen were there too, although it seemed like the husband wasn't anywhere nearby. Naruto and Sasuke walked along the market stands, curious at first, but lost interest rather quickly.

Back at the town's square they saw the homeless man from the previous night, who seemingly hadn't moved from his spot. Naruto nodded at him, but the man ignored his greeting. Without anything else to do, soon they decided to go back to the hotel to leave their new supplies, before making plans for the evening.

"Sasuke…" Naruto called out to him when they were already halfway through.

"I know." His friend answered, his eyes still on the road. "We've been slacking off. Why don't we go do some training after we leave everything in our room?

He and Naruto shared a glance. "Sound good to me." The blonde agreed easily.

It didn't take them long to reach the Ryokan. They climbed the stairs to their room, and left their backpacks on the sofa. If they were going to train it was better not to carry any weight. Soon they walked back into the reception hall, ready to go, but then the receptionist asked Naruto some stupid question and the blonde stopped to talk to her.

Frowning, but not wanting to analyse why he was suddenly feeling upset, Sasuke walked past them towards the door.

"You know where to meet me." He grumbled, without turning to look at the blonde as he exited the hall.

His feet took him beyond the river and into the woods, to an area of difficult access for anyone who hadn't mastered the art of climbing with chakra, which made it the perfect place for training. Once there he dropped his disguise, immediately feeling more comfortable in his own skin, after which he sat on one of the tree branches to wait. Hopefully he wouldn't make him wait too long.

Only a few minutes later, he heard the sound of footsteps approaching from behind. They weren't particularly loud, although the person wasn't trying to be quiet either.

Sasuke smiled to himself, without turning to greet the newcomer. "I've been waiting for you." He said aloud, his gaze still fixed on the trees in front of him.

"Have you?" The voice questioned, slowly. "I'd say that's very foolish of you, but you've always been a little foolish, haven't you, little brother?

* * *

 _Hiya people! I had a very stresful week at work, so this time my AN is going to be quite short. I want to thank everybody for their reviews. Usually I answer all of them personally, but I barely had sparse time this week, as I went with my special needs class in a week trip to Cornwell. And the place didn't even have wifi or data connection! So If I haven't answered you, just give me a little time and I'll get up to date soon. Promise!_

 _Meanwhile I'll leave you with some detective work. Sasuke and Naruto had crossed path with Itachi at least once in this chapter, of course Itachi was in disguise so they didn't recognize him. Can you guess his identity? Let's see how many of you get it right!_

 _And yes, for the next chapter the long awaited confrontation. I'm still working on it, so if you want it ready for next weekend... review please! There are the fuel that keeps me engrossed in this story, especially now that my new school year is about to begin. This year I'll graduate from uni! Can you believe it? Kudos for me! ;-)_


	9. Chapter 9

_Helo guys! First of all I wanted to apologize for making you wait so much for this chapter. First it took me ages to finish it. I had a disagreement with my sister a few weeks ago, and before than we were extremely close, so I struggled a lot to write these scenes between Sasuke and Itachi, and I'm still not sure about the final result. Then my wonderful beta feel ill (I do hope you are feeling better now, Caia)._

 _Finally it was my friend Bubbusaja who helped me to finish and edit this chapter, for which I'm very grateful. It's only thanks to her that this chapter is finally ready. I hope you will enjoy it though, so that the wait was worthy._

* * *

 **Chapter 9.**

A few feet before Sasuke stood the homeless man, except that now he didn't look like a homeless man at all.

At first glance, Itachi looked quite similar to the last time Sasuke had seen him alive. He was already as tall as he had ever been in the future –his height fully developed –; he kept his hair long and in a ponytail, his features were shadowed by severe dark circles, and the shape of his body was covered by the Akatsuki cloak he was wearing.

He was trying hard to portray a vibe of disinterest through his corporal language and facial expression – a facade which Sasuke was intimately familiar –, but his gaze betrayed him. His eyes had not wandered an inch from his brother.

It was in the details that the biggest differences were found. His cheeks had a healthier colour than the last time they faced each other – before the Edo Tensei –, he held his shoulder straighter, and what little could be seen of his body looked a bit fuller than it had been towards the end.

Satisfied with those changes, Sasuke slowly rose to his feet, until he was standing over the tree branch where he sat just seconds ago, and addressed his older brother. "Itachi."

"Sasuke."

They stared at each other in silence, the air between them full of tension and unsaid truths, until, once again, Sasuke was the first one to speak. "Your disguising skills need some work."

"Oh?" Itachi raised a single eyebrow. "What gave me away?"

"It was the crows." Another voice answered from behind the trees; both Itachi and Sasuke turned to look at the newcomer. Naruto ignored the former and approached the second until he was standing next to him on the tree. He and Sasuke shared a brief glance, nodding slightly at each other.

Reassured by whatever silent message had passed between them, Naruto shifted his attention to Itachi. "I spot them flying away from the Onsen, after a kid splashed water over them," He elaborated. "They pretended to be normal birds, but it's pretty difficult to mistake them once you've seen them up close."

"And once we knew you were watching, it was just a matter of making you show yourself to me," Sasuke concluded for him.

Even though they had tried, they had been unable to locate Itachi's chakra signature nor the identity of the person he was impersonating. Itachi's control and accuracy in the art of shinobi were beyond any others, and not even by working together could they to surpass his technique. Aware of this, Naruto and Sasuke had come up with a plan to outsmart him instead.

"So you walked around town and then pretended to come here by yourself, when actually your friend was trailing not too far behind," Itachi guessed correctly.

Then, just for an instant, his eyes shone with a forbidden emotion. It was pride for his little brother. "You truly have grown." He reflected aloud, though this emotion did not last more than a second. He blinked and when he opened his eyes again, they were like two inscrutable cesspools: black, cold, and blank. "And what do you want to do now that you have found out?" He asked, showing only a mild interest. "Let me guess." His lips curled up in a cruel smile. "You'll threaten to kill me, as a way to get revenge for the death of our pitiful parents?"

"Shut up!" Sasuke quickly shouted, his emotions spiralling wildly at the mention of his parents. "Don't talk about them like that," He demanded. "I know the truth now, Itachi. No matter what you say, you can't no longer use them to manipulate me into hating you. "

Itachi's expression remained unaltered.

"The truth, you say? I thought I had already shown you the truth once, the night it happened," He recalled amusedly. "I did show you the way I killed them; the way I enjoyed their deaths and prolonged them, all to test my capabilities." At this, his eyes slowly began to turn red; first red with three black spots, and then red with a more elaborate black pattern. "But perhaps I'm wrong. Perhaps you need to relive it again, to remember it properly. Shall I show you our mother's screams, our father's pathetic cries for mercy? "

Sasuke's control snapped at these words. He jumped against his brother blindly, and if not for Naruto holding him back in time, he would've ended up with his back against a tree and under Itachi's grip, not unlike the previous time.

"Sasuke! Sasuke, look at me!" Naruto begged when Sasuke began fighting to get past him. "You've got to remember why we are here. Sasuke!"

His words slowly reached his best friend, who stopped struggling and instead closed his eyes for a minute, trying to regain his emotional control. On the ground, Itachi narrowed his eyes and his attention shifted to Naruto for the first time. "Konoha's jinchuuriki." He said aloud, identifying him at last.

The two of them ignored him.

Sasuke took a deep breath, and noticed for the first time that his hands were shaking. Upset with this realization, he clenched his fits in an attempt to keep them still, but the tremble only slowed down a little. He hated himself for a moment. He hated his weakness. How could he be so weak? How could he let his feelings overrule his reason in a time as crucial as this?

He was aware of Itachi's reasoning behind his cruel words. He knew his brother didn't mean any of them. Itachi had loved his parents, just as much as Sasuke had; and Itachi loved him. His brother was only trying to look out for him, even if he was erring in his method. And yet, the simple of mention of those images…

It didn't matter that he knew they were fake memories, and that he had been privy to the real ones now. Those images were the recollection of the most traumatic moments of his life; those were the images that had been present in every nightmare, in every lonely day and in every sleepless night for eight years of his life. Knowing that they were not real didn't diminish the power they held over him.

However, this time he wasn't alone to face them. Sasuke let himself feel the weight and warmth of Naruto's arms and torso against his own body. He took another deep breath. He wasn't alone, he reminded himself. Naruto was here for him, and so was his brother. He was in control of this situation. He could prove to them – and to himself – that he wasn't a kid hurting anymore. He was an adult now. And he could handle things like an adult.

Slowly, not wanting his actions to be taken as a rejection of him, he stepped away from Naruto's grip. They shared a glance. They understood each other. Sasuke turned his head to look at his older brother.

"Give it up, Itachi. It's not going to work." He stated, slowly at first, but with growing confidence. "You can hurt me, but you can't make me hate you. Your lies can't erase the truth of what happened that night. I know." He repeated, before his brother could come up with another hateful lie. "I know that our mother didn't scream, that our father didn't beg. I know he asked you to take care of me, and that he called you a very gentle child."

For the first time, Itachi's emotionless facade fell. He blinked and failed to distance himself from the memory that had weighted on his conscience every day since that fateful night, four years ago. The memory of the crime that he had committed; the crime that had erased every ounce of self-respect he might've felt towards himself, and for which he was determined to obtain a fitting punishment in the hands of the person he loved the most; his innocent little brother.

But said brother was here now, and he was looking at Itachi without hate in his eyes. His gaze was fixed on Itachi with something that resembled hope and… and something else. An emotion Itachi refused to identify.

"Sasuke... I killed them." He said again, and yet his words lacked cruelty this time. It sounded almost like a confession. "I killed our parents. I had a choice, and I chose to kill them."

"I know you did." It was hard to admit it, but Sasuke was tired of living in a world of lies. His life would be darkened only by the truth, no matter how painful it was. "I know why you did it too." He said. "Every day of my life I live with that knowledge, same as you. And sometimes I want to still hate you for it." That was another hard thing to confess.

Sasuke lowered his eyes for a moment, staring at his brother's feet instead of his face. The truth was that, even after knowing everything, it would be so easy to keep hating Itachi. If not for killing his parents, then for not taking Sasuke away with him when he left, instead of making him believe that he was a monster who had never loved him. So very easy.

But Sasuke had already walked down that road once. He knew where it led, and he had no desire to end up in that place again. He was wiser now, older. He knew that there were things in life that were worth more than justice or revenge. He had seen his brother die, twice; he had mourned him, he had missed him, and he had had to live in a world without him. And now that Itachi was here, alive, and so close, Sasuke was determined not to let anything ruin this second chance they had to be brothers again. To be happy next to each other.

"I could hate you…" He said again. "I hated you so much, once. I put my hatred for you above everything else, and it nearly destroyed me. I was so close to destroying myself, and everything I hold dear."

He shook his head, dispelling the unpleasant memories, and stole a quick glance at Naruto. Seeing his friend next to him reassured him, and made it possible for him to believe that everything was going to be alright at the end. He just needed to live through this conversation first.

His eyes travelled back to his brother. "This time I won't make that mistake. This time, I choose to forgive you. Big brother, I forgive you." He vowed wholeheartedly.

For a long time, the two brothers stared at each other. Sasuke's expression was supplicant, silently pleading his older brother to accept his forgiveness. Itachi's features were unreadable – he remained still and didn't utter a single word. But the spell that kept them in place couldn't last forever.

Slowly, Itachi regain control of his body. He shut down his emotions and took a few steps back, increasing the distance that separated him from his younger brother.

"Go back to Konoha, Sasuke." He ordered, voice calm.

It was the only answer he could give him.

If Sasuke was resolute to keep his hate at bay, as his brother, Itachi could only accept his choice and give him his blessing. He might have to find a different way to die, or, more likely, resigned himself to remain alive longer than expected to protect Sasuke from the enemies of their clan (since, by not killing Itachi, Sasuke would not be able to wake the Mangekyō Sharingan any time soon, and thus, he wouldn't become strong enough to protect himself for several years yet).

But his brother was worthy of this sacrifice.

"What?" Judging by his tone of voice, Sasuke didn't agree with Itachi's plot. The word was full of incredulity and anger.

But his brother was still a naïve child, who probably thought of the world as a fair place. He believed that words of forgiveness – as undeserved as they were – could fix a situation, or even a person, that was already broken. Itachi didn't want to destroy this illusion.

"You are young, and have your whole life ahead of you." He said instead. "Enjoy it. That's all I want for you. If you do not wish to hate me, then forget my existence; leave me be. Return to Konoha. Take your friend with you. I'm sure the Hokage will forgive your desertion. Once there, you can train to become a stronger ninja, and live a happy life."

Sasuke couldn't help it. The picture Itachi that presented him was so fucking perfect, and so utterly fake, that he couldn't help it. He laughed.

He laughed and then laughed some more.

"Oh. Fuck you!" He spat, without having stopped laughing yet. "Fuck you." He said once more, when he finally recovered control over his voice.

Ironically, it was precisely these words that finally cracked Itachi's mask of indifference for a second time. His brother looked at him reprovingly, clearly bothered by his use of foul language, which in turn only made Sasuke laugh harder.

"You are so fucking condescending!" Sasuke accused him, angrily. "Since we were kids, you were always so sure you knew better, and you, and you alone decided what was best for me." He recalled. "It never occurred to you to ask what I wanted." He cursed again, bitterly, and then met his brother's gaze, resolutely. "Well, I've got news for you, Itachi. I'm no longer a kid. And you can no longer play me as if I were a bloody pawn in your game of chess. I'm not going back to Konoha! I don't want the Hokage's forgiveness, and I don't need anyone to get stronger!"

"What do you want, then?" The oldest of the Uchicha asked, seemingly unperturbed by his brother's sudden outburst of anger.

"I want you by my side." Sasuke answered sincerely, once again. "And this time, I want you to see what I have to show you."

Itachi arched an eyebrow, as if inquiring about the meaning behind these words. But Sasuke didn't give him time to question him aloud. He jumped from the tree, and reappeared a few feet from his brother, face to face with him. Itachi widened his eyes, and grimace in horror. He began to say: "Sasuke, what have you…?" but couldn't end that sentence.

Naruto detected the familiar flow of chakra, and guessed correctly what Sasuke was going to do just seconds before he did it, but he did not have time to stop him. He ran to his side anyway, aware of the heavy toll that that technique would take from him.

The two brothers stood still, their eyes trapped in each other's gaze for what it seemed like ages, but in reality was only a few seconds. Then the two of them collapsed at once.

"Sasuke!" He cried, and Naruto had to use a big part of his strength to prevent his friend from falling to the ground – but at least his eye wasn't bleeding this time. Naruto held him from his shoulders, and after a few moments Sasuke returned his grip, tightly wrapping his right hand around Naruto's waist.

"I'm alright." Sasuke assured him in a low whisper meant only for him. "I showed him. I did. He knows now…"

Both their gazes turned towards Itachi. With no one to hold onto, he had fallen to the ground. With his knees and hands on the floor, it was impossible to see his face. But the two friends noticed the small pool of tears that had formed right under his face.

"Itachi…" Sasuke whispered his brother's name without letting go of his hold on Naruto.

Itachi didn't hear him, nor did he lift his gaze from the ground. The Tsukuyomi's effects had shaken him like nothing before.

His mind was full of foreign images – memories of a life that he had never lived –, while his brain worked hard trying to decipher unfamiliar depictions of his little brother, ones that covered many years and were set in a future that was yet to come.

As if on fast forwards, Itachi relived the memory of Sasuke walking away from Konoha forever. He witnessed his brother's desperation as he decided to break the bonds that tied him to the few people that he cared for since his parents' murder. He felt his heart breaking as he kneeled over the unconscious body of the boy that had come to mean everything for him – the one boy that belonged to him, Sasuke's only surviving family.

Sasuke could not bear to lose him. Sasuke would not survive if Itachi took the life of a loved one from him once again, so he abandoned him instead, breaking his heart – Naruto's and Sasuke's as well in the process. He ran away from his life, and he became a person who had nothing to lose, and only one goal he cared about. He became a lonely, cruel and bitter young man. He became an avenger.

"Sasuke..."

He witnessed the years that Sasuke spend under Orochimaru's coaching and guidance. The terrifying first years, when he was not yet strong enough to protect himself against the threats and abuse of those who enjoyed the favour of his twisted sensei. He felt the coldness that had slowly taken over his soul.

He saw, years later, the fight that had taken place between Sasuke and himself. He felt his brother's relief, when finally everything was over. His parents' murder was avenged. And then, the terrible revelation. The big secret that Itachi had fought so hard to keep for all those years, out in the open. "I'm sorry."

He was a witness of his brother's sanity falling to pieces, and everything that came after. Sasuke had been so close to destroying himself, and obliterating the world in his anger.

"I've never wanted…"

He saw everything that was beautiful and pure about his brother… vanish forever, because of him. Because of the terrible mistake that Itachi made almost five years ago, the night that he was unable to carry out the job as he had been instructed, and instead of facing his actions – instead of facing his brother with the truth – he chose to run.

He truly was a coward. He saw it clearly now. That night he had run away and hadn't stopped running ever since, because being hated from afar was so much easier than remaining close to be a direct subject of said hatred.

Sasuke was the thing – the person – that he loved most in the world. And through his actions, Itachi had almost destroyed him. He had never expected to see until what extent.

"I'm so sorry." He said once more. Tears slid down his cheeks and fell to the ground. He was still on his knees, and so afraid of meeting his brother's gaze.

"I forgive you." Sasuke reassured him quickly. "I forgave you for everything a long time ago. Itachi…" He took a step towards him, to embrace him, to show him his love, only to be stopped again by his brother's words.

"You shouldn't. Can't you see?" This time he didn't bother to disguise his expression, and his face revelled all the pain, all the disgust, and the desolation he was feeling towards himself. "Can you see what I am? The things I've done..." Itachi shook his head, helplessly. "How much death these hands have brough-" He looked at them with repulsion. "I don't deserve you, Sasuke. I don't-"

Sasuke's heart sank in his chest painfully; he knew where this conversation was going now. His brother was going to reject him again – to ask him to stay away from him one more time. This time not to protect him, not for Sasuke's own good, but because the hatred that Itachi felt towards himself was so vast, so strong, that he could never accept the forgiveness, or worse yet, the love of his little brother.

And when he did, when Itachi rejected him, everything they've been through, everything Naruto had given up just so he could be here in this moment, all would be for nothing. Sasuke couldn't stand the thought. He couldn't lose his big brother, not again, not when he had him so close.

Full of desperation, the young man fell to his knees.

"Please, stop." He begged him, his voice desolated. "I don't care. Itachi, okay? I don't care. You always cared about so many things… but I only wanted you to care about me." He looked at his brother, supplicant. "Please. Forget about the damn village, and even mom and dad. They wanted you to take care of me anyway! Forget... forget everything else! I don't care what you've done! I just want you with me."

It was extremely hard for him to confess this, and yet he couldn't stop now, not while there was still a chance to persuade his brother to remain by his side. "You are wrong if you think you don't deserve me, " he tried to reason with him. "Why don't you think about what I deserve instead! What I want! All I've ever wanted is- It's just..."

His voice faltered, his eyes were full of tears, and he didn't have the strength to go on. But he needed to tell Itachi this, not matter how hard and painful it was, or he would regret it forever. Sasuke threw his pride away, shut his eyes tightly, and, in very low whisper, he confessed: "I need you, oni-san. I need you to love me. Please."

For several seconds no answer came. Sasuke's shoulders sunk defeat.

There wasn't anything else he could do or say to change his brother's mind, and he knew now that it wasn't enough. His pleads had never been enough. Just as it had happened before –countless times when Sasuke had begged Itachi for attention, for just a little bit of his time–, in his mind, Sasuke could already hear his brother's rejection. And there was nothing he could do.

This was the battle that he had travelled through time and space to fight, and he had lost. This reality nailed into his heart like thorns in the flesh, and so, he did nothing to stop the tears that came with it. Sasuke wept, heartbroken.

On the ground, still on his hands and knees, Itachi heard his brother's cries.

In silence, he had listened to his pleads, had watched as Sasuke discarded every ounce of pride and self-respect and begged his older brother to love him. And all along, there was only one thing that Itachi could think: "This was never what I wanted for him."

When he left him that night, five years ago… No. Before that. The day he watched his brother carefree playing in the playground of the Academy, already immersed in a rivalry with the jinchuuriki boy; the day Itachi decided he could not risk the peace of the village – everything that had been achieved at the end of last Great War –, even at the heavy price of his family and clan. Since that day, and even before, all that he had wanted for Sasuke was to live a good life; to be surrounded by people he could trust and care for, and to grow up confident and strong.

Itachi had never wanted to see the beauty of his mind destroyed, or the purity of his heart darkened by the irreparable damage he had caused. More than anything, Itachi had never wanted to see his little brother like this: on his knees, and begging for a love that had always been his, since the moment his was born and his beautiful eyes stared into Itachi's for the first time.

Sasuke had gave meaning to his life, when Itachi was struggling to find any.

For once, Itachi's brain failed to successfully analyse the situation. His conscience failed to show him the righteous path. His tight grasp over his emotions faltered. The guilt and hatred that he carried within himself failed to overcome his wishes. And for once, Itachi did the one thing that he had longed to do since the moment his path took him away from Sasuke, that night many years ago.

He crawled to his brother, and hugged him.

"I love you." He vowed, wrapping his arms around his brother's upper body. "My dear little brother." Itachi held him close and Sasuke leaned his head against his brother's chest. "I've always loved you." He kissed his temple. "I always will."

And for a moment, one eternal moment, both brothers stood with their knees on the ground, both of them crying, with their bodies so closely wrapped in each other that they could very well have been just one person. And just for that moment, the world was a beautiful place and everything was alright.

"Always."

* * *

 _Well, what do you think? I'm really anxious to hear about your opinion about these chapter… As I said, it was really hard for me to write it. And I think I mixed some personal stuff with the characters' development. But I tried really hard to keep them all in character!_

 _The next chapter is already finished, so you won't have to wait as much to read it. One or two weeks only. Meanwhile, I look foward reading your feedback! Especially your insight on the characters._

 _See you soon, my friends! :-)_


	10. Chapter 10

_Hello everybody. First of all, an apology. Something happened to a member of my family a few months ago, and I had to leave my job in England to go back home. It was a really difficult time, and despite how much I tried, I could not muster much interest for the fic - for anything really._

 _The situation is a bit more hopeful now, and if everything goes alright I should be back to England in a month or so. This fic is in hiatus until then._

 _This chapter was already finished for quite a long time, and I'm sorry I didn't post it before or let you know what was happening. But at the time, I was shocked and in a terribly painful position. As I said all is better now, so I hope you can enjoy it._

 _I want to thank my friend Bubbusaja, who helped me to finish this chapter.  
_

 _And I want to especially thank my new beta,_ **IceCreamIceQueen** , who has helped a lot revising this and the preivous chapter as well! Thank you so much for your help! You did a fantastic job!

* * *

 **Chapter 10**

In the quiet of their room, the moon high in the sky, Naruto watched over the sleeping figure of his best friend. Anyone could see that the events of the previous day had driven him to exhaustion. This was not surprising. Not only he had brought the Mangekyou into play again, but this time Sasuke had used it to show his brother ten years' worth of memories.

However, it was the emotional fallout that had followed what truly had drained all his strength. He and Itachi had stood still in their position for a very long time; both brothers kneeling on the ground, not daring to let go of the other.

At first, the two brothers were crying. Naruto hadn't been very surprised by such a display of emotion. He had never been a victim of the Tsukuyomi, but he remembered the precarious state in which Kakashi had been brought to the hospital after Itachi used that technique on him. Although Sasuke's purpose hadn't been hurting his brother, Naruto doubted he had taken the care and time to censor the memories that he had forced Itachi to watch.

Naruto remembered very well the behaviour Sasuke had displayed a few years ago; the crimes he had committed, and the flickering state of his mental health. He had been dangerously close to falling into insanity. Some nights, Naruto still had nightmares about it – about reaching him too late, about failing during their final battle and losing Sasuke forever in a world of darkness and demons of his own creation.

Despite Itachi's usual detachment from his feelings, having all these memories thrown at him, without proper time to process them... It wasn't that shocking that his unyielding grasp over his emotions had shattered, redeeming him unable to do anything else but to hold onto his beloved brother tightly.

Naruto walked away a few steps, and turned his gaze away. He didn't want to intrude the brothers' privacy, nor did he want to listen to the words they were whispering at each other. This moment, this long awaited moment, was sacred; and it belonged only to them.

Itachi calmed down first, but he kept holding onto his brother, not wanting to let go of him even for a second. His tears had dried and his expression had recovered its usual calm by the time Sasuke's cries quietened, having fallen asleep in his big brother's arms. Itachi's eyes searched for Naruto then. "Please, show me where I can take him." He asked him.

Naruto nodded at him, and started walking. The older Uchiha rose to his feet, lifting Sasuke in his arms like a baby. There was nothing in his posture or the way he carried himself that betrayed the fact that he had been kneeling on the ground for hours. He followed Naruto as he led the way to Sasuke's and his hotel room.

Sasuke didn't as much as twitch on the way there, but the moment Itachi laid him on the futon, his eyes opened wide and his hand moved quickly to catch his brother by the arm. "Don't go. Don't leave me. Please."

Itachi, who couldn't stand the thought of his brother begging once more, acquiesced easily and sat on the futon right beside him. "I won't." He promised.

Gratified, Sasuke let his eyelids close again and his breath gradually fell into a relaxed pattern. By the time the moon reached a high point in the midnight sky, he was deeply asleep.

Itachi stood slowly from the futon, his feet leading him to the window. The night seemed extremely peaceful outside these walls, in radical contrast to the way his emotions were raging at war inside of him. He wasn't used to this… feeling – this uncertainty –, and he didn't like it.

Someone like himself, who held so much power just in his eyes, shouldn't let his emotions rule him, or worse yet, cloud his mind. It was dangerous. At the same time, Itachi was aware of the source of such confusion –the origin and cause of the storm that boiled inside of him–, and knew what steps to take to regain control of himself.

His eyes travelled to the figure his little brother, who was peacefully asleep on his futon. His little brother…

"You can't leave." A voice commanded, as if reading his thoughts.

It wasn't Sasuke this time. Itachi blinked, and for a moment he failed to identify the owner of said voice – seven nights without barely any sleep were finally catching up to him. Then he saw him, the silent figure standing not too far from himself. "Naruto." He recalled his name from the memories that Sasuke had shown him.

Itachi closed his eyes, knowing that in front of him stood the man that had succeeded where he had failed. The young man to whom Itachi owed his brother's life and sanity. His brother's best friend.

He was also the man who made possible for Sasuke to be here; the one who had carried out the Jutsu that brought them here, to a time they had already lived once. Itachi had conflicted feelings about that.

"You can't leave him." Naruto said once again, when he failed to obtain a reply from Itachi.

Itachi breathed deeply, trying to make some sense of the flow of images and feelings that plagued his mind. Memories that didn't belong to him, which perhaps explained the intensity with which they had hit him. They were his brother's memories. Sasuke had always felt things more intensely than him, his emotion running deeper than Itachi's, even as a toddler.

For the most part, they were terrible memories. Memories of a life that Itachi wished he could change, wished it had never taken place in the first place. And yet, despite this…

"I was dead." He recalled, surprising both Naruto and himself. "I was already dead when you came here. The war was over; the world was at peace. You had saved Sasuke, and he wouldn't have betrayed you a second time." He himself was shocked by the intensity of his feelings in this matter. "Why did you come?"

Why did you have to come? He didn't say that though. Saying that would've been selfish, and Itachi didn't want to be selfish in regards to his little brother. But he also could not help feeling atremendously jealous. How was it possible – he wondered for a moment –, to feel such a consuming jealousy towards no other than oneself, just a few years down the road?

However the Itachi of that future universe had already found peace. He was finally resting. He no longer belonged to this world – this ugly world full of lies and undeterred suffering. In death, he was free.

Itachi didn't believe in the afterlife. He never hoped to join his parents in Heaven, or feared eternal punishment for his sins. He saw death like an eternal night of dreamless sleep. He would close his eyes, his consciousness would fall, and nothingness would embrace him. There would not be more doubts, nor worries, nor pain. Everything would be over.

How could he not yearn for such an estate? How could he not be resentful when said destiny had been stolen away from him?

"We came here for you." Naruto answered simply.

His gaze was honest. Itachi believed him, and yet… "Why?" He begged to understand. "Sasuke was safe. Everything was… as alright as it could ever be, in life. And you left it all behind…"

"Sasuke wasn't alright." Naruto contradicted him harshly. "You can't honestly believe that after he showed you his memories."

"He was alive." Itachi argued. "He was alive and he had you. I saw that. You were always there for him, even when he didn't want you to. You succeeded where I failed… He loves you. He would've lived for you."

"But I didn't want him to live just for me." Naruto retorted quickly. "That's what you wanted. You gave him a reason to live where he had none – he lived to kill you. And then you gave him your eyes, so no one would be able to take his life from him. But that wasn't a life… To live like that, fueled only by hatred and fear and pain… it isn't worthy. You saw what it did to him."

Itachi could not deny that. He had never expected his actions from five years ago to break his brother so badly; to push him down such a dangerous path. He had hoped… Well. He had wanted Sasuke to survive, and to be proud of being who he was. He had hoped his little brother would kill him one day, getting revenge for his parents and obtaining the eyes that would shield him from his enemies. That would've given Sasuke the closure he needed to get over their murder, surely.

Then again, it was Sasuke. So perhaps Itachi hadn't thought it through properly. He had weighed his options, he had considered all the possible outcomes, and in the end he had chosen the one that secured the minimum amount of bloodshed in the long term – and he didn't regret it, for it had been the best choice out of a collection of bad choices, considering the information that had been available in the moment.

But Sasuke had never entered into that equation. Sasuke wasn't going to lose his life. In every alternative he had considered, every option he had imagined, that fact wasn't up for discussion. Sasuke always survived.

Naruto was right though. He had been so busy securing his brother's life that he had wasted little thought on his happiness. To Itachi, happiness always seemed fickle anyway; not something someone could trust. It was only a state of mind, a matter of perspective.

Of course Itachi had wanted Sasuke to be happy, but if his happiness was the price to pay for his survival…

"But he was better…" He argued again. "You were sharing a home, and even if it wasn't perfect… it was life."

"I know." Naruto admitted that fact. "Believe it or not, it was me who wanted to leave Konoha. You know that I am a jinchuuriki. For this, I grew up alone and hated. And all my life, all I ever wanted, was to be acknowledged by others. I thought I'd achieve this by becoming Hokage. It was only when everybody was asking me to step up as the Nanadaime that I realised… It wasn't at all what I wanted."

Naruto thought about his dream. In that other universe he had been acknowledged, that much was true. People looked up to his name and respected it. But he had only achieved those thing by becoming someone that wasn't him; by giving up his personality and goals and dreams, and allowing himself to be reshaped into someone else.

Itachi was listening to him with interest.

"The people of Konoha, they thought of me as a hero, and they wanted me to become their Hokage." Naruto explained. "But they didn't really want me. They wanted another version of me, one that fit their expectations, and they expect me to fit this ideal. Luckily for me," he added with a smile "I realised in time that me giving up my identity, the things that made me myself, and the people I loved… so a bunch of stiff and selfish people would think I'm worthy of them, well, it wasn't worthy at all."

"So you walked away…"

"Yeah." Naruto agreed, unrepentant. "I was only eighteen, and as you said, the world was finally at peace. I had travelled before with my master, and some of my best memories were made in that journey. I'm not saying that if they needed me, I wouldn't have gone back to Konoha, because my friends were there and the village will always have a special place in my heart, but I wanted to… to be free and be without worries again; to hit the road, and be young, and have adventures and meet interesting people. As long as I had Sasuke with me, I felt I could go anywhere."

Itachi nodded. He could sympathise with such longing, but there was still something he needed to understand. "Why did you need to leave your universe then? If you could've gone anywhere, why use this sort of multi time-universe travel? You know it's not natural."

Naruto lowered his face, and took a few seconds to answer.

The answer came from his heart. "Because although Sasuke would have followed me anywhere, and he would have lived and laughed for me, sometimes I felt as if only half of his soul were present. I wanted him to live and laugh for himself." He confessed, his eyes staring at the night sky through the window.

The moon was partially darkened by clouds now, and only a few stars could be seen. Dawn was near. He could not face Itachi's gaze yet.

"Because I realised…" he continued, his eyes fixed on the landscape outside the window while his mind recalled the memory of that other carefree Sasuke – the one who laughed freely, smirked mischievously and kissed Naruto against the kitchen's counter, whispering words of love in his ear –. "I realise that if I could go anywhere, the only place I wanted to be was one where Sasuke had a chance to be truly happy – to give him back a little bit of the happiness and hope that other people's cruelty had stolen from him, that was what I wanted most. And I knew that to achieve it, the only thing that could make Sasuke hopeful again, it was you."

That was a very critical declaration. If Naruto spoke the truth – if Itachi's presence in his brother's life played such a fundamental role on Sasuke's mental and emotional health –, it put another heavy responsibility on his shoulders. And yet, Itachi could not bring himself to doubt this young man's words; because hearing him talk about Sasuke, he had realised something too.

"You love him." He stated. You are in love with my brother." There was no judgment in his eyes as he gazed at Naruto, only recognition.

"I am."

Naruto didn't want to lie to Itachi. He was the only person who loved and cherished Sasuke as much as he did, and if there was someone who deserved the truth, it was him.

"But he doesn't know it, and I don't want him to know it." He warned him calmly. "I love him." It was the first time he'd admitted it to someone aloud, and despite his fears, it felt good to finally getting it off his chest. "And I know he cares deeply for me. The fact that I also feel physically attracted to him is not important."

Itachi looked at him with a pensive expression; his eyes wise beyond his years. "Is that how you truly feel?" He asked.

Naruto's lips curled up into a tiny smile, but not a bitter one. "I believe that in another world he might have felt attracted to me too, and we would've been great together."

He laughed at this, but soon his expression turned grave again.

"But Sasuke, our Sasuke – he has suffered so much. And... although he has endured, he carries so many scars with him. He is so inherently good, and yet he struggles so much to feel any kind of empathy for others. He thinks he should care, but he doesn't – he can't –, and for that he considers himself a bad person. I'd never ask of him something that he isn't ready to give, or make him feel guilty for refusing." He vowed. "I'm happy if he is happy, and by my side."

Itachi had no answer to that. This time, he was the one who lowered his eyes and avoided Naruto's gaze. It was so easy to mistake this man in front of him as a kid – he looked like one, and despite Sasuke's memories, it was difficult to dismiss the truth of what his eyes saw as a lie.

But listening to him… It didn't matter if the body was that of a child; the words he spoke could only belong to an adult man. And the person he referred to, it was another man – a man with the complexity and depth of a fully mature person. A man whom Naruto knew intimately well – perhaps as well as he knew himself –, and one of whom Itachi knew so little.

The saddest thing was, that even if he hadn't travelled back in time from a parallel universe, Sasuke would still have grown up to be an stranger. Someone of whom Itachi knew practically nothing. This realization – as obvious as it was – made his heart sank in pain.

Naruto didn't give him time to recover from it.

"You need to make a choice." He emphasized firmly. "Sasuke is here now, and he is no longer a child. You can't keep manipulating his life from afar – he won't allow that. If you love him, you need to choose."

At this, Itachi's gaze finally met his, and the black of his pupils was clouded by a shadow of fear. His eyes looked, perhaps, more human that Naruto had even seen them – and they bore such a strong resemblance to Sasuke's that, for a moment, Naruto's breath was taken away. But he couldn't relent now; for the good of Sasuke, he needed to say it all.

"If you love him enough to forgive yourself, and if you respect him enough not to question his choices – the fact that he considers someone worthy –, then stay. Itachi, stay and give Sasuke and yourself a new chance at life – a new chance at happiness." He spoke from his heart, praying this to be the choice he would follow.

There was only another alternative.

"But if you can't do that..." he added, his voice a few tones lower. "If you can't bear the thought of a life at his side, then leave; leave and put an end to it. Do not ask him to do it for you. You have weapons. If life is really something you can't endure, then end it, and let Sasuke be free of you."

It was hard to say all this, first because Naruto had come to greatly admire Itachi from the last few meetings they had shared – and he wished him well –, and second, because he knew Sasuke's heart would be shattered again if he lost his brother one more time. But he truly believed it was for the best, for both of them. No one could force another person to live if their heart was set against it. One could make sure someone survived, but actually living – that had to be their choice –.

Even in his childhood, when every aspect of his life was as good as it could ever be, Itachi had questioned the meaning of life, had wondered about the purpose of all of it – what sense did it make, to be alive?

For years after that, ever since he had held baby Sasuke for the first time, he had thought he had found his answer. Itachi lived to protect the innocent – to safeguard his little brother's innocence. He fought to make sure others wouldn't need to. He navigated the shadows, so that others could keep up their illusions of light – so that his brother could think of the world as a something safe and precious, a place worth living.

But then, life had showed him his true, ugliest face – an impossible choice that had to be made –. And Itachi had made a mistake. After viewing Sasuke's memories, and being a witness to his feelings, that was the only conclusion he could come to. He had made a mistake. He should have taken Sasuke and run – either destroying his clan first, or leaving it intact behind them.

He would be lying if he said he hadn't considered this option – repeatedly. But first his conscience had prevented him from running away from a situation that would cause a war on a great scale, when he held in his eyes the power to avert it. And after he became a kin-slayer, his guilt had stopped him from reaching out to his brother – for although Sasuke might have still loved him and forgiven him, Itachi hadn't considered himself worthy of such esteem.

This certainty only served to prove that Sasuke had been right at reproaching Itachi about taking his choices away from him, thinking he knew best. This was his chance to rectify that.

Could Itachi really accept that his brother loved him, forgave him, and wished for his presence, despite being aware of all the truth behind his bloody deeds? Could he put aside all the guilt, the contempt he felt towards himself, and the obligations that tied him to his old village to start anew, to build a new life together with Sasuke?

"I don't think I know how to be a big brother anymore." He confessed in a low mumble, his heart heavy with shame.

His words made Naruto smile a tiny smile. For the first time since the conversation began, he felt truly hopeful, and the fear that had taken hold of his chest started to vanish at last. In that moment, Naruto knew that no matter what happened from now on, the three of them were going to be alright.

"I don't think Sasuke knows how to be a brother either." He said. "But that's okay. You can learn together, I think."

* * *

I hope you have enjoyed it. As I said, the fic will officially be in hiatus for a few weeks yer, but I had this chapter ready from ages, and since I'm hoping to be back in England soon, I decided to post it here now.

If everything goes as I intend, the fic will have aroun 30 chapters, with 3 different story arcs. This is the end of the first arc. It was basicly a chance to see where Naruto and Sasuke stand with each other, a little bit of their past and a lot of their current relationship, and a quest for finding Itachi of course.

Next arc will be about Sasuke and Itachi mending their relationship, and we'll also see how Naruto and Sasuke come to be together by the end of it. But I'm afriad you still have to wait a little bit for that.

Again, I hope you have enjoyed this chapter and that you have forgiven me for my absence. I promise when everything is alright in my life again, I'll come back and write this story properly.

Best wishes for everybody. Read you soon guys!


	11. Chapter 11

Hello everybody! As you see, I'm back and this story's hiatus is finally over, believe it!

I don't want to recount sad events. I just want to thank everybody for the support you gave me. Now to the story. This chapter is not very long, I just need to put myself back in situation, really. But I hope you can enjoy it. Naruto, Sasuke and Itachi are finally together, and in the way to become another "Golden Trio".

 **Also very important, I want to thank IceCreamIceQueen, who accepted to help me from now on with this story, and who made a great job as my beta. I'm learning so much from her!**

* * *

 **Chapter 11**

The first morning the three of them spent together was plainly awkward. They woke up late, and would've slept longer if not for the noises that crept up from the gardens. They took turns using the bathroom, and once they were properly dressed, rang for a maid and ordered some breakfast to be brought to their room, despite it being close to lunchtime.

They ate their food in silence, each of them lost in their own thoughts. Not even Naruto tried to make some joke to lighten up the mood. He felt quite content, but very tired. He had stayed up nearly until sundown speaking with Itachi, and although he was fairly certain that this time he would stand by his choice and stay, the brief hours of sleep he had gotten were not nearly enough to make him feel rested.

Meanwhile, Sasuke was was facing a confusing mix of feelings, such as exhilaration, victory, exhaustion, and complete mortification. Itachi was here next to him, and they were enjoying breakfast together as good brothers should; for that, his heart was swelled with happiness.

And yet, thinking about his emotional breakdown, the way he had begged and clung to his brother and cried like a helpless baby, embarrassed him deeply. Of course, he would do it again, if that what it took for Itachi to listen, but he wished it hadn't been necessary. Now it was difficult for him to be in the same room as Naruto and his brother, and not to wonder what they were thinking of him.

Had their opinion of Sasuke changed? Did they consider him weaker than they did before? He couldn't stand the thought. But how could he meet their gaze to be sure that his fears were unfounded, after the obvious lack of emotional control he had display yesterday? It was easier to eat in silence and let Naruto or Itachi take the lead for the day.

When they finished eating, Itachi thanked them politely for his meal, something that Naruto and Sasuke rarely bothered to do, and then offered to clean up the dishes. How an exiled criminal could display better manners than them was a question which both Sasuke and Naruto were happy to ignore.

Once the table was cleared, without anything else to distract them, the awkward mood returned. Sasuke and Naruto shared a quick glance and hurriedly averted each other's gaze. They half-heartedly tried to make themselves look busy – by folding a futon or checking the weather through the window –, something that Itachi, standing still in the middle of the room, didn't bother to do. The three of them had the same question in mind.

Now what?

At the end, it was Itachi the one who dared to bring up the subject. "I take it that neither of you have plans to return to Konoha?"

"Of course not!" Sasuke's refusal was adamant.

Naruto shrugged, his answer a little more laid back: "Not for a long while, at least."

"Is there a particular place you'd like to reside? I'm afraid my infamous reputation precedes me. I'm a wanted criminal in most countries and, as you can imagine, not welcome in many of them".

Sasuke frowned, resentful – what right did stupid people have to judge his brother? He was worth more than any of them! But he also felt quite pleased. Itachi had included himself in their plans, which meant he no longer needed to doubt his brother. He would stay true to his word, and followed them as he had promised.

"We didn't have much of a plan, beyond finding you," he admitted to his brother. As for their future plans, he looked at Naruto. "Is there anywhere you'd like to go?"

The blonde considered it for a moment, but came up with no answer.

"Won't they miss you in the Akatsuki?" He asked Itachi instead.

The older Uchiha shook his head once. "I told Kisame, my partner, that I would meet him in four weeks in a place that is known to both of us. And that if I didn't, he should consider me dead and think of me no more."

"But won't they go after you when they find out you have deserted them?"

"It's but a small possibility. No one is forced to be part of the Akatsuki. The leader might want to secure my silence – to make sure I don't sell their secrets, but he was always very careful not to share them with any of us."

"If they come, we can take them," Sasuke stated with certainty.

Naruto wasn't so sure. "Two of them, sure. But at our current level, if all of them come at once…"

"They won't," Itachi assured them. "Pein will never leave the base for me, not without sending his agents first. That's not how he operates. And in any case, I doubt they will come after me. Sooner or later, though, they will come after you," he warned, his eyes piercing Naruto.

"Because of Kurama," he understood.

"Yes."

"I won't let them have him," he vowed. "And I think it's clear what we have to do."

"We train," Sasuke affirmed with a resolve that matched his. "We train until our bodies regain their full capacity. And then we take them out before they have any chance to come after you. If we stop them before they have a chance to collect the bijūs…"

"Madara's whole plan will be aborted, and there'll be no war." Naruto finished for him.

Itachi's eyes travelled from one to the other, slightly amused at their synchrony.

"That is a worthy goal," he acknowledged. "But far from easy. While the leader might not be inclined to act against me, Madara – Obito, as you call him" he corrected himself, according to the memories that Sasuke had shown him. "He mistrusts me, and he has connections and influence in the inner government of several villages."

"We can beat him," Sasuke was sure of it.

Naruto nodded in agreement. "We know all his weaknesses and he knows none of ours."

His friend smiled. "So that's the plan, then. We train, and then we make sure the Akatsuki can't obtain the bijūs." It was a good plan, as far as Sasuke was concerned. Nevertheless, he searched for his brother's eyes. "Are you okay with that? Going after your former teammates?"

"Akatsuki isn't a team," he replied quickly. "And I was always spying on them. My true loyalty always belonged to Konoha."

It was a very diplomatic way to evade Sasuke's question. To Itachi, taking a life was always difficult. Every time he killed someone, he was painfully aware he was stealing from that person all the different paths they had yet to live – all the choices that had yet to make. And nevertheless, he never hesitated.

He would not hesitate either if the person were a former ally. Although, after four years of coexistence, he had come to understand and even empathize with a considerable number of Akatsuki's members.

"We might not have to," Naruto intervened, to Itachi's surprise. "We might not have to fight them at all." The two brothers stared at him. "I met Nagato in the past. I know him well. His heart is in the right place, even if his methods are mistaken. I believe I can change his mind if I speak with him. I did it before."

This information was new to Itachi, as it was absent from Sasuke's recollection of memories. He arched an eyebrow, interested. Meanwhile, Sasuke seemed conflicted. "Only after he killed your master," he had to point it out.

"Yes." Naruto admitted it. "But he did sacrifice his life to bring back Kakashi and the rest of the people he had killed. He was wrong in his actions, but he atoned for them. And I believe he is a good person."

Sasuke didn't have anything to say about that. In all honesty, he would never understand how Naruto was able to forgive – and even befriend, to some extent – the person who had killed someone he had loved so deeply. Sometimes he thought it was madness – and a terrible mistake at that. Other times… Other times he admired him for it. It took a strange kind of bravery to forgive someone who had wronged you – to show kindness to someone who had intentionally hurt you. Sasuke would never have that ability – he didn't want it either. But he trusted Naruto's instincts with his life.

"If you can convince the leader to take your side, the rest of the Akatsuki will follow," Itachi assessed with conviction. "They are all openly afraid of him, and most of them are also afraid of me. But Obito will need to be taken care of."

Naruto accepted the truth of these words. After all, it had nearly taken the end of the world for Obito to see the error of his ways. And yet, he recoiled at the idea of killing someone who had not only being an ally for a short time, and victim of Madara at that, but who was also so dear to their former sensei.

"We should cross that bridge when we get to it," he decided.

There were little else to discuss after that; just a few details to sort out. They agreed to remain in town for another few weeks, as the place was considerably free of any shinobi's influence and, considering that their identities were already established, it lowered the risk of attracting unwanted attention now that Itachi had joined them.

Naruto and Sasuke would train in order to increase the endurance and durability of their bodies, as well as to raise their chakra levels. The three of them also needed to get used to each others techniques and fighting style, to be able to operate as a single unit when the situation called for it.

After that, they might travel to the Country of Rock again, or perhaps to some remote corner of The Land of Sand. Somewhere isolated where they could practice their most visible and powerful jutsus without being spotted by anyone, and without putting anyone in danger.

* * *

As if per mutual agreement, the awkward mood was lifted after that first conversation. They had a clear path standing before them now, as well as a concrete objective. It was easier to adapt to the changes the present brought, when they knew where those changes were taking them. The incertitude vanished, and the path to successful cohabitation opened for them.

No major changes were made in the following days, despite the presence of a newcomer in their lives. Itachi adjusted quite well to Naruto and Sasuke's lifestyle. He followed their lead and employed the Transformation Jutsu to disguise himself as an average young man, whom they introduced as Yohi Itami, their nephew– their sister's son, just old enough to start learning the family trade.

In order to achieve their goal, the three of them also established a training routine to which they adhered rigorously.

Early in the mornings, they had breakfast in their room, and then they set off to their corner in the woods where they could train privately. They exercised individually for a few hours to increase their stamina and improve their body strength –, and then took a break to eat lunch together. After that, they resumed training. This time, they took turns to participate in one to one matches – except the instances when Sasuke and Naruto teamed up against Itachi, and fought him together, which happened quite often.

Sasuke and Naruto pushed themselves tirelessly, and as a result, both made great progress in the course of only two weeks. It still wasn't enough to overcome Itachi's defences though.

Today they resisted for almost two hours before having to admit defeat, which was an improvement compared to the one hour and fifteen minutes they had lasted yesterday.

"I still can't believe how fast you are," Naruto complained grudgingly, sitting down on the ground with a sigh of relief.

His back ached, as did his arse and most of his muscles, but he was quite used to it now, after the last couple of weeks. Itachi sat down next to him, while Sasuke remained standing with his back against a tree– his breath still heavy. He and Naruto had joined forces once more to bring down the eldest Uchiha, but then they failed to deliver more than a couple of blows. It was humiliating.

"It's not as much a matter of speed as one of foreseeing," Itachi coached them calmly, making a display of his usual humbleness. "They are several shinobi who are faster than me, and you in particular have the potential to become the quickest of them all." He was looking pointedly at Naruto. "But I still could defeat most of them." It wasn't arrogance that led him to say this, he was merely stating a fact. "The key lies in your eyes. If you watch your opponent carefully, you'll discover that their movements always give away their thoughts. And once you have access to their thoughts, the fight is yours."

"Well, I knew that," Naruto said. He did, at least to an extent. "But I've never met anyone who could predict their opponents' actions as accurately and fast as you do."

Shikamaru worked like that too, always analysing his opponent's' mindset as well as his surroundings to work them in his favour, and yet he hadn't come anywhere close to Itachi's level of proficiency – although of all the people Naruto with whom had trained, he was the one who came the closest.

"Don't think it'll be this easy once we are away from here and able to use our ninjutsu as well," Sasuke joined the conversation. His breath was steady now, although his cheeks still wore a rosy colour from the previous combat.

"Is that so?" Far from feeling affronted, Itachi's lips curled up in a rare, honest smile. "In that case, I look forward to having a one to one match against you, Sasuke."

Sasuke automatically smiled back, obviously pleased by brother's acknowledgement, and the rosy shade of his cheeks darkened a few tones.

"He looks adorable," Naruto couldn't help but think, which made him feel very guilty, so he rushed to approach another subject; anything to distract himself. "Do you think we should leave this Sunday, or should we stay for another week?"

It was the first question that came to his mind, but Sasuke seemed to take it seriously, as he furrowed his brows and considered it for a few seconds.

"I'm only able to use my Rinnegan for a minute and half, less than that if I try any major technique. My chakra is drawn immediately if I bring out Susanoo, and that's beside the fact that I can barely move afterwards." He was very displeased about this, especially when he remembered how his brother had had to carry him back to the hotel – again – after awakening the God of Storm for the first time. "I admit that we have improved, but we still need to do better."

At least it didn't make his eye bleed. On the second day of training they had discovered that Sasuke could access all the Mangekyō Sharingan's abilities from his Rinnegan, without it having a negative effect on his sight – which explained why his right eye didn't bleed after using Tsukoyomi on Itachi.

Since Susanoo could be awakened from either eye, in theory there was nothing stopping him from using it. In theory. In reality, his body was too weak to sustain the God for more than a few seconds – he had the ability, but not the capacity to do so yet, which frustrated him to no end.

"I can't say I don't agree. Kurama and I are getting better at using his chakra mode, but we aren't nearly as good as we were before." They were unbeatable at taijutsu, but every time Naruto tried to do some ninjutsu, the technique didn't work the way it was supposed to – it was either too strong or too weak or too out of control. The worst thing was that he hadn't figured it out what was wrong yet. "And I still can't access to the Six Path Mode." He turned his head to look at the older Uchiha, to inquire about his opinion. "Itachi?"

"I believe you both have made a great progress, although we can stay another two weeks if you like," he said to both of them. "But you need to keep in mind that your bodies are young, and every day they use a lot of energy for growing. Not matter how much you train, you won't reach the level you had in the future, not until your bodies are completely developed."

Sasuke grudgingly admitted the accuracy of such an assessment, but he was not ready to give up yet. "It doesn't mean we can't get stronger," he affirmed stubbornly. Itachi nodded at him, conceding this point.

"Well, if we are gonna stay, I think we should take a couple of days off to give our bodies a chance to recover." It was, of course, Naruto's idea.

Without meaning to, Sasuke recoiled at the prospect. It was easy to focus on their goal and not let anything else distract him, when they spent so many hours of everyday solely training. By the time the day was over, the three of them were exhausted. One didn't bother about silly fears or unresolved feelings when they were too tired to stand up straight.

In a way, the two brothers had been shielding themselves behind this routine to avoid confronting the issues that still hung between them.

Itachi must've been aware of this, because he seemed as reluctant as Sasuke to Naruto's suggestion, despite acknowledging that it was, in fact, a very good idea. They needed to give their bodies a couple of days of rest, after demanding so much of them for so long. He hadn't exhausted his as much as his brother and Naruto had, and yet he knew if they wanted to keep developing their skills at their current speed, they needed a break first.

"I believe it's a wise idea," he admitted with a heavy heart, pointedly not looking at Sasuke.

"Great!" Naruto didn't share the brothers' unwillingness. "I'll go and tell Hikari then. She's been enquiring me about it."

"Who the hell is Hikari?" Sasuke's hesitancy quickly gave way to his bad mood.

"The girl from reception?" Naruto answered, as it were obvious. "Honestly, Sasuke. We've been here for longer than a month and you haven't bothered to learn her name yet…"

Instead of being dragged into another argument, Sasuke quickly jumped to his feet, and took the exit that Naruto had unintentionally given him. It solved two problems at once. "I'll go inform her, then. That way I can ask her about her name, and make sure we get to keep our room for another two weeks."

Naruto hadn't yet had time to register those words, when Sasuke disappeared from their sight. He furrowed his brow, baffled. "What the hell?"

"He doesn't like the receptionist girl," Itachi pointed out.

The blonde didn't pay his words much attention. "I guess that's Sasuke for you," he said, feeling dejected after being left behind in such manner. "As you'll soon find out, your brother dislikes most everybody…."

"He wasn't keen on the idea of spending time with me outside of training either," Itachi couldn't help but add.

Naruto searched for his gaze this time, and his childish irritation vanished before such declaration. "That's not truth. You know it's not."

Itachi returned his gaze openly. "Isn't it?"

"Of course not. You should've seen him before. He wouldn't shut up talking about you until we found you, and I've never seen him happier than he is been these last two weeks."

"Perhaps." Itachi had no way to know if this was so, but he trusted Naruto's word when it came to his brother. "But I hurt him, deeply. And even if he has forgiven me, now that I'm close to him, it's not easy to let that go…"

Naruto admitted that this was true, but after all the effort Sasuke had put into getting his brother back, he refused to believe this was an obstacle they couldn't overcome.

"You just need time to reconnect again, to remember what being brothers is about," he said. "I'll make sure you have some time alone tomorrow."

* * *

So, this is it. My first chapter after six month of not writing. I was quite anxious writing it. I even went back and watch a few episodes of Naruto again, because I was afraid I had forgotten how to play the characters properly… What do you think? Am I getting his personalities rights? Would they act like this in the manga?

Seeing as Sasuke broke down last chapter, and he cried in front of his brother and Naruto, it's clear for me that now that he's feeling more like himself, he would be a little embarrassed of such blatant display of emotion, at least to a point.

Itachi, on the other hand, always was more open with his emotions than Sasuke. Before he had to start acting as a psycho, I mean. Back then, little Sasuke was very talkative, but he didn't express his feelings as openly as his brother did, which might have been due to his inferiority complex. Itachi was more willing to talk about his insecurities, fears and hopes.

Two chapters ago, Itachi was overthrown emotionally after Sasuke used the Tsukuyomi on him. He surrendered to his feelings, because he couldn't refuse his little brother when he was crying and begging for his love in front of him, and hugged him. But then he had time to think about it with a cold head, and he was very close to leave him again. This is when Naruto talk to him, and told him to choose: either leave forever or stay with his brother.

We know that Itachi thought about it calmly and at the end, he decided to stay. Now this was a rational decision, that he made after considering all the possibilities. I think, after making a choice, Itachi stands by it. That's part of his character. And we can see that reflected here. He is calmer than Sasuke. He had decided to stay and is ready to face the consequences, to make it work or die trying. Which I think it's a very Itachi thing to do.

This is my opinion, of course. I can't wait to read about yours. Reading about your different takes on his character helps me a lot, when I'm writing from his perspective.

I hope as well that you have enjoy the chapter, I seeing as I already finished the next one, I can promise that I will post it in two weeks, earlier than that if I get a quick response.

Take care, everybody. I read you soon!


	12. Chapter 12

_Hello! I just want to thank everybody for the amazing support you showed me in the last chapter, after such a long ausence. This chapter was supposed to be published in two parts, but after all your kind words and the interest you showed, I decided to upload it as one long chapter as a gift for all of you._

 _I want to thank my beta, IceCreamIceQueen, because she continues to help me with this story, and because I'm improving my english a lot under her careful guidance._

 _This chapter is a particular favourite of mine, so I hope you can enjoy it as much as I did while writting it. I must warn you, there is a mild sexual scene in this chapter. I'm not saying which one because I don't want to give SPOILERS, but if you feel unconfortable reading it, I'll tell you it only happens at the end of the story, it's nothing but a character's sexual fantasy._

* * *

 **Chapter 12**

True to his word, the next day Naruto came up with a plan to keep both brothers out of the hotel room they shared, as a means to make them spend some time together.

The morning started out nicely enough. For the first time in two weeks, the alarm clock hadn't awakened them before the sky lit up. They slept in and had a late breakfast in bed. Then, before Sasuke and Itachi had time to start feeling out of place, Naruto suggested going for a walk in the village and visiting the marketplace again, to which they rapidly agreed.

It was a Thursday, so there weren't as many people as one could expect on the weekends. This suited the two brothers well, since neither of them were fans of mingling in a crowd. Soon, the two of them were busy wandering around the market's stands in an effort to find some tools that could be turned into weapons for their training seasons.

Naruto tried to keep up with them at first, not wanting them to guess his true intentions, but then he met a couple of merchants – a married couple from the Land of Sand who had moved here a few years ago, trying to escape the arid weather of the desert – and befriended them, so he stopped to chat with them for a while.

The couple seemed to like him, and they were quite flattered by his interest in what they have to say. They had on display a collection of soaps, perfumes and other homemade products, and assured Naruto they had made a small fortune selling them to the tourists that came to visit the area. He did not to doubt this, and indeed, he unnecessary purchased a few vials of oil in hopes of treating himself to an especial afternoon later on, if everything went according to his plan.

Both Itachi and Sasuke were too distracted with inspecting the weapons stand to pay him any attention, so Naruto chatted with the couple a bit longer before approaching the brothers.

If his plan was to succeed, now was the moment to implement it.

"Hi!" Sasuke noticed his presence first, and turned to look at him. "Where were you? Is it lunch time already?"

Naruto shook his head, regretfully, and tried not to think about how he passing up the chance of eating some homemade ramen for lunch after two weeks of ninja rations. Some things had priority. He wanted to help Sasuke sort out a few things with his brother, and he had promised Itachi that he would find a way for them to spend some private time with each other.

"I feel sick," he said instead, trying to look much worse than he felt. "I'm afraid I have to go back to the hotel."

"What?" Sasuke looked at him in surprise, which quickly morphed into worry. At the same time, Naruto could feel Itachi's gaze piercing him from his back, but he refused to meet his eyes. "What's wrong?"

"I don't think I should've eaten all that bacon this morning," he explained quickly, faking nausea. "I feel like I'm gonna puke. Or worse."

"We can go back–"

"No!" Naruto said firmly. "I'd rather not have you watch me while I puke my guts out in the toilet, thank you. Since we all share a room, I'm going back to the hotel and you're staying here for at least three hours to give me some privacy. Is that clear, bastard?"

Sasuke didn't have time to retort to this insult. Just as he was opening his mouth to speak, Naruto disappeared from his sight. Focusing, he could still feel his chakra, quickly nearing their hotel now.

He was certainly in a hurry.

"You okay?" Itachi asked him from his right.

Sasuke shook his head, not yet sure of what have happened.

"I've watched him eat before. He eats as a whale, and hasn't got sick once since we were kids," he grumbled. "There is something going on with him."

Sensing his brother's uneasiness, Itachi put a light hand on the lower part of his back and gently guided him to the market exit. "Let's go," he said. Once they were out of hearing range, he lowered his hand and searched for Sasuke's eyes before admitting: "He is not sick."

"How'd do you know?" his brother asked, frowning.

"I know he wanted us to spend some quality time together, and I think this is his way of getting us to do just that," Itachi explained.

Sasuke's questions didn't take time to arrive: "Why? How do you know? Did you ask him to do it?"

"He told me yesterday, in the clearing, after you left. And no, I didn't ask him. The idea was his, and he offered," Itachi answered truthfully.

He was more nervous than he let on, and the last thing he wanted was to upset his brother. But if there was one thing that the last few weeks' experiences had taught him, was that to build a lasting, healthy relationship with his brother, he had to be honest. Even about the smallest things.

Lying came too easily for him, and that was the reason he mustn't lie to Sasuke.

"But you didn't say no," his brother pointed out.

"I didn't. I believe Naruto thought we needed some time alone to talk about certain things, and I agreed with him." As scary as the prospect was, it was also the right course of action. "But we don't have to, though. If you rather go back to the hotel, we–"

"No," Sasuke interrupted him. "We can stay. I mean we can…" He was silent for a moment, trying to get his thoughts in order, trying to find the right words. His heart was beating faster than a few seconds ago, and his gaze was heavy on the ground. "I don't mind talking," he said at last. "But, Itachi… You didn't need to do that. I mean, if you wanted to talk with me, you could just –. You can just ask me."

Itachi lowered his head for a moment, and he did not look at Sasuke while he apologized. "I'm sorry," he said, "I don't–."

Sasuke had never heard Itachi struggling with words before, not outside a life or death situation. He did not like it. It made him feel awkward. "I don't know how to do this." Itachi confessed at last.

Now, that made Sasuke lift his eyes to meet his brothers', quick as a wink and without conscious intention.

"How to do what?" He probed, and only then did he notice he was scowling. That was not what he intended, he didn't intend to feel this defensive. Sasuke forced his muscles to relax.

He did not want to seem threatening, and yet…

"I don't know how to be a brother."

His whole body stepped back, it was instinctual. Immediately Itachi reached for him, and held him by his shoulders, preventing him from increasing the gap between them.

"I love you." He swore, staring fixedly into his eyes. "I love you, Sasuke, and in all these years, there hasn't been a day gone by when I didn't think of you, when I didn't miss you. But you were a child when I left you, and I was your older brother. I thought I knew what my job was: I had to protect you, I had to make sure you had a chance to live a good life, not matter what. And I failed. I failed at everything. And now… Now you are no longer a child."

Despite how much he wished to contradict his brother, Sasuke couldn't deny his words, for they spoke of a truth that had tormented him quite often lately. These were words that he had only dared to think about in the privacy of his bed, during those sleepless nights where rest seemed to avoid him.

"But I'm still your brother. And I still need you," he begged.

"I know, Sasuke, I know," Itachi reassured him quickly. "You will always be my brother, and I will always love you. But you've been alive longer than me, and in many ways, you've become a wiser man than I am. And that's… I'm so proud of you, little brother," he said, his eyes shining with said pride.

He carried on, giving voice to his fears, "But you no longer need me to protect you, and I don't know… I don't know what my role as your older brother should be. I don't–. I barely know who you are." It hurt Itachi to say that aloud, and yet, as painful as it was, he spoke only the truth. "But I want to learn."

He meant that too, with all his heart, "I want to get to know you. I want to learn everything there is to know about you. Above all else, I want to learn how to be your brother again. To become a better brother than I was… That's what I want that more than anything, Sasuke. That is, if… if you allow me to, of course," he finished, and his eyes could not conceal the fear that lay behind them.

He was afraid of rejection. It was such an obvious fact, and yet Sasuke hadn't understood it until now. Itachi was afraid of overstepping his brother's limits, and being cast out of his life as a consequence. While Sasuke took no pleasure in his brother's qualms, somehow, knowing he wasn't the only struggling with his insecurities when it concerned their relationship, it caused a strong outburst of confidence.

"Of course I want you to know me," he answered honestly. "You are my brother. But I want to learn to know you too, Itachi, okay? You said it yourself. This time, I'm older than you. So whatever comes next, we have to face it together."

"Okay," Itachi acquiesced easily, gifting his brother a true, beautiful smile. "But then I need you to do something for me," he warned him. "You have to remember, that no matter how old you get, you'll always be my little brother."

As he said this, he poked Sasuke's forehead with two fingers, the way he used to do when they were children. This time, he wasn't apologizing for sending him away. This time, he was inviting him all the way in.

* * *

After their heart to heart conversation, Itachi suggested they go to one of the town's nearby restaurants for lunch, to which Sasuke readily agreed. The mood between them was light-hearted and serene, and, even though they were walking in silence, the faint, unspoken tension that had weighed them down for the last few weeks was gone.

Itachi felt… at ease, he could even say at peace. It was a foreign sensation for him, to feel like this.

For the first time in what seemed like forever, there were no secrets between them. He and Sasuke had discussed their feelings and fears with each other in an open way. They had spoken honestly, like two adults who had nothing to hide; and even more importantly, they had talked to each other like equals.

The end result was… agreeable. Pleasant, even. Considering their tight upbringing, the tragic circumstances that had led them here, and how hard it was for the two brothers to bring down their defences and speak aloud about their feelings, they had managed to do quite well. Once disbelief had subsided, Itachi finally identified the two emotions he was feeling: contentment and pride.

The strange thing was, he was proud of them both.

The town's main square was only fifteen minutes away from the marketplace. Once there, Itachi incited Sasuke to choose a restaurant. He selected one with a lot of vegetarian options, but which also had on displayed a large collection of onigiri.

"You still like it, right?" he asked Itachi, looking at him briefly.

"I do," Itachi agreed, a tender feeling spreading across his chest. It shouldn't be so moving that Sasuke remembered his favourite food. It was but a small, insignificant detail. And yet, it warmed him up from the inside.

A waiter in a classic uniform greeted them courteously once they entered the restaurant, and guided them to their table. He offered them a menu template each, and told them he would come back in a few minutes to take their orders.

Sasuke eyed the selection of meals for a few minutes and, when the waiter returned, he requested roasted salmon with tomato basil and an heirloom salad with rosemary. On the other hand, Itachi chose a traditional bento lunch that included three onigiri rice balls, a chicken burger, and two tamagoyaki. He also asked for a bottle of expensive sake to accompany their meal, while Sasuke looked at him in disbelief.

Itachi laughed at his incredulous face. "You can't be that surprised," he jested once the waiter was out of hearing range. "If I remember correctly, father always said that sake is a respectable drink for a Japanese man."

"Yeah, well." Sasuke scowled. "That's not what you told me last time I asked you for some."

His brother rolled his eyes, not taking him seriously, "You were six then. That hardly qualifies at a man."

Sasuke neither confirmed nor denied said affirmation. "How old were you, the first time you tried it?" he dared Itachi to answer instead, raising his eyebrows at him.

Itachi did so after a few seconds of silence.

"I was ten."

Sasuke's features reflected his incredulity. "Ten!?" He wasn't even sure if he should believe him. Maybe Itachi was playing a prank on him. He used to do that all the time. "And father didn't mind?"

"Father never found out, Sasuke," Itachi corrected him, as if it were obvious. "It was after I was made chunnin. Tensions were high between the Land of Fire and the Land of Earth. We had to steal a scroll from their village, but we were discovered as we were leaving, and we had to kill our way out of there. I had never killed someone before, and those people... they weren't evil," he recalled. "They were just like us; men and women trying to defend their homes. I think that was the moment when I understood what being a ninja really meant," he continued. "I knew it before, in a technical way. But that moment, I felt it in my blood."

Sasuke listened intently. He could barely believe that Itachi was sharing such an intimate memory with him, seeing as there wasn't no pressing need for him to know it. As a child, before everything came crashing down, he had dreamed of becoming his brother's confidant, his brother's most loyal friend. But back them, Itachi saw him only as his little brother; someone to coddle, someone to protect, especially from some harsh truths.

"When I came back to the village, Shisui took me to the top of the hill of the Hogakes monument, and asked me to look down to the village. 'This is what we fight to protect, Itachi', he said. 'The people down there; we kill so can live in peace.' Then he walked me to the training grounds, and we both got drunk on cheap sake. I remember that we couldn't stand straight for hours afterwards"

"Really? Shisui?"

Sasuke was smiling. He remembered his carefree cousin, so different from his other clan relatives. He was always cheerful, always willing to indulge Sasuke, especially when his brother was too busy to pay him mind. He also remembered, from the memories that Edo-Tensei Itachi had shown him, that it had been a teenage Suishu - who had been just about to commit suicide -, who had instructed a thirteen-year-old Itachi to protect the village at all cost. But Sasuke didn't want to disturb their current conversation with dark thoughts, so he shut down that line of thinking quickly.

"He was my best friend." It was all the explanation Itachi offered. "Did you never get drunk with Naruto?"

"No," he answered. But then, when he thought about it, he was surprised to realise this was so. "Well, there was this one time. A little before we took the chunnin exams, we were on a mission with Kakashi, but he had abandoned us at an inn for no reason. Naruto woke up us in the middle of the night. He thought it would be a good idea to buy some sake from the innkeeper, to teach Kakashi a lesson. But he didn't have any money, so he decided to use his baka no jutsu instead."

Itachi raised his eyebrows at him, amused. "Baka no justsu?"

"That's what it is," Sasuke stated with a straight face. "The idiot uses the transformation justsu to turn himself into a woman, usually young, and usually naked."

His brother laughed a little. "I can see him doing that," he said. "What happened after?"

"Well, he flirted with the innkeeper but–" His explanation was interrupted by the waiter, who approached to their table.

Sasuke quieted down while he served them their food, and Itachi thanked the man politely. The waiter also poured them both a small glass of sake, and then left the bottle in the centre of the table, next to the bread and the salad. "Let me know if you need anything else, please, Sirs," he told them, nodding slightly at them before retiring.

Sasuke and Itachi took that chance to try their meals and drink some of the sake. It was delicious, a complex mix of spices and sweetness which suited the taste of their food flawlessly. Satisfied with the quality of his onigiri as well, Itachi encouraged Sasuke to finish his tale.

"… So, Naruto was flirting with the innkeeper, hoping the old man would give him a few drinks for free, and, for a while there, even I thought he'd get his way for a change. But suddenly the innkeeper's wife came in, and she was pissed off. She was strong, and she was dammed crazy. She started hitting Naruto on the head with a kitchen roller, all the time screaming about unfaithful old men and worthless sluts who knew not how to respect their elders, until he had to crawl his way out of there. I don't think Sakura had ever laughed harder."

Sasuke himself hadn't been able to stop laughing completely, despite his aversion for obvious shows of emotion. At twelve, he had tried very hard to portray himself as serious and aloof, above the childlikeness and stupidity of his teammates – just the way he remembered Itachi to be. And yet, it had been difficult to keep a straight face when Naruto was around. He had been such an idiot back then.

Sasuke hadn't nicknamed him usuratonkachi and dobe without good reasons. Although now he was mature enough to admit that Naruto's nickname for him, teme, also had fit Sasuke quite nicely. Thinking about their relationship back then, when all they did was insult, compete with and provoke each other, brought a small smile to his lips.

"Sakura was your other teammate? The girl with the pink hair?" Itachi asked him, oblivious to his brother's train of thought. He remembered seeing shadows of that girl when Sasuke had used Tsukuyomi to show him his memories, although he couldn't be sure, as she had only appeared from afar, and only in a few of them.

"Yes. And Kakashi was our sensei. We worked as a team for over a year and a half, ever since we graduated from the academy, and until I left Konoha for Orochimaru."

Itachi nodded, taking the chance to have another spoonful of his food. He was wise enough to understand that there was more to the story than just that, and that one day he and his little brother should talk about the time that he had spent living with the Snake, but also to realise that said day wasn't today.

"I'm sure you enjoyed making Kakashi's life difficult," he said instead, refilling both their glasses with some more sake. "He was Captain of my AMBU team for a while... Did you ever get to see his face?

"No, we didn't," Sasuke answered easily, before taking a sip of his drink. "Although we did try…"

He began to tell Itachi about that incident, so distant in his memory that he hadn't thought about it for years. It was a far-off time, back when he still had dreams about his family and awoke to remember that Itachi had killed them. He had cursed his brother's name back then, and dreamed of killing him, and yet, some nights, when he was asleep, he saw him the way he had been, and he loved him.

It had been the hardest thing, to wake up with a heart full of love, and have that love ripped off his chest by the cruellest memories.

But somehow, that pain and loneliness had been washed away by the cheerful presence of Naruto. In Team 7, he had found company, and the blond idiot had become his family. Despite how harshly it ended, it was a surprisingly easy time to remember, and Sasuke was happy to share these memories with his brother now.

"I remember that we came up with a plan to…"

* * *

In the other side of town, Naruto was enjoying a very different kind of afternoon.

From the beginning, he was determined to make the best out of the few hours he had to himself. Whereas he was a sociable person and loathed the idea of living alone – he had spent three years traveling with Jiraya after all, and after that he had shared a flat with Sasuke for another two –, this time, he was delighted to have the room to himself for a change.

The last few months had been great, and he wouldn't trade them for anything, and yet, perhaps it was time to talk to the brothers into getting a room for each of them. It was not like they were short on money anyway. Sasuke was the sole heir to the Uchiha's fortune, and even if he persuaded Itachi to accept half of it, they would still be fairly rich.

They could afford three single rooms, and Naruto would welcome the sort of privacy that such a space would give him. Especially if it meant he no longer had to worry about getting a hard-on from Sasuke in front of his brother.

Whilst Naruto had managed to keep Sasuke in the dark about such frequent occurrences for about three years, Itachi wasn't half as oblivious as his brother, and his eyes were far sharper. Naruto couldn't think of a more awkward situation, particularly since the oldest Uchiha was aware of his feelings for his brother.

Naruto would die of embarrassment if that ever happened, so it couldn't be helped it; they had to rent two more rooms, perhaps even an apartment, considering they could very well stay in the town for another month or so. Naruto would tell them once they came back. It wouldn't be hard to persuade Itachi to his way of thinking, seeing as he was so much more agreeable than his little brother. And Sasuke rarely said no to Itachi. So, that was it. Problem solved.

Thinking about them made Naruto wonder for a moment how they were, and if they had managed to have a real conversation, one that wasn't training-related and that went beyond mono-syllabics assertions. But he didn't want to think about Sasuke right now. He was determined to enjoy some relaxing time, and having the dark-haired man in his thoughts would be detrimental in such endeavour.

Happily humming a tune to himself, Naruto walked into the bathroom and turned on the water in the bathtub. He had only to wait a few minutes before it was half filled, after which he poured in some of the oils he had purchased in the market earlier on. He started to take off his clothes. When the bathtub was complete filled, he turned off the water and walked to the bedroom again, taking with him the Icha-Icha book from his backpack.

The merchant couple had assured him that the oils had aphrodisiac effects, and he was hoping it was true. Naruto left the book and a hand towel next to the bathtub – just in case he needed to dry his hands quickly, as he didn't want to risk soaking the pages –, quickly unmade the transformation justsu he usually wore, and got in. The water was warm and silky, and it felt really nice on his skin.

Naruto closed his eyes and laid his body down against the tub. He breathed deeply. The stiffness that had plagued his muscles as a result of the previous weeks of intense training, began to fade.

Oh yes, life was good.

But after a few minutes of relaxation, he began to feel restless again. He opened his eyes, reached out for the towel, and dried his hands with it carefully. Then he took the book and opened it by page one. _Icha-Icha Paradise: The Wonders of Ginger_. Just the title caught the attention of his cock, which immediately twitched with interest.

Oh! It was actually hardening, and he hadn't even touched it yet…

So perhaps the oils did work after all.

Smiling pleasantly to himself, he brought his hand to his dick and started caressing it very, very slowly. With his other hand, he held the book and somehow managed to turned the pages. It didn't take long to get to the juicy part of the story. After the woman harshly refused the red-haired man's advances in front of their friends, he finally cornered her in the kitchen. And it turned out she was interested, after all. But he wasn't going to give in to her pleas so quickly, not after had been refuted in such manner.

No, he wouldn't fuck her. He would make her beg first… And if she was very good, her hungry pussy might get the cock it craved as a reward. Seeing as they were in the kitchen, the man opened the fridge and eyed its contents. He studied the cucumber for a moment, but then he put it aside. Then his eyes found a ginger root.

Bingo!

His eyes fixed on the book, and knowing what was coming, Naruto bit his tongue and began caressing his cock a bit harder, gently pinching his balls for a moment as well. It felt so fucking good!

He hadn't been able to take this sort of time to jerk off for half a year, having to settle for getting off in the shower in less than five minutes instead. And he hadn't even jerked off at all since Itachi had joined them. Every stroke of his cock felt ten times intensified because of this. Oh, he was in Heaven!

The guy got the ginger ready, and introduced it very slowly into the woman's tight pussy. She was wet and gasped with pleasure, before the burning sensation settled in. Then she began to twitch and beg for mercy. Unmoved, he spanked her ass twice as response, one slap in each cheek. She cried in pain, then, and he started to play with her asshole, introducing one finger and then two. He was so turned on…

Naruto couldn't keep reading; his eyes wouldn't stay focused. He was stroking his cock with fervour, moaning, and horny beyond belief. He let the book fall outside the tub, and closed his eyes. In his mind, he replayed the scene he had just read. Except that in his thoughts, the man wasn't red haired but blond, like himself. And the woman had dark eyes, and bluish black hair, and she wasn't a woman at all.

He was a strong man instead, laying against the kitchen parlour. The man gasped against his will as Naruto pushed the ginger root deeper into his ass; he was flushed, and his hair untidy. He was looking at him so intensely…

In reality, Naruto was panting. His nipples were painfully erect, and his cock hard as a rock, and he was so close, so close…

Then three things happened at once.

Naruto stroked his cock one more time. He cried "fuck!" aloud, and then he was coming. A foreign blare resounded in the other side of the room. Something popped out of nothing. Someone. Naruto heard the noise, but his brain didn't process it. He was panting, his chest rising heavily. His mind was off, still lost in exhilaration.

That had been a fucking fantastic orgasm. So good, that he didn't even feel remorse for the turn that his imagination had taken at the end. Oh, every person should feel like this at least once a day. Men and women, who cared? There was no way in hell that he was going another four weeks without jerking off, Itachi's sharp gaze be dammed.

Then, very slowly, the high feeling of exhilaration began to pass, although he still felt fairly relax. Reality settled back in. Naruto breathed deeply and opened his eyes. His brain recalled the noise that it had registered before, and he furrowed his eyebrows. His eyes moved to the corner where the noise had come from, lazily but curious.

There was something on the floor there…

There was someone…

Aiming to put his senses back to work, Naruto finally recognized the unconscious figure.

It was Gaara.

* * *

What can I say about this chapter? I really enjoy writing it. It was such a nice change to have Sasuke and Itachi been just normal brothers, you know? First, they had to clear the air between them, of course, but I'm pretty proud of the way they did it. I follow my good friend noodlepower's advice, because I agreed with her that Itachi would take a direct approach to fix the problem.

But now that they had addressed the biggest issues hanging between them, I think it was time to stop worrying so much about what the other would think, and just relax and be brothers. There will be time for worries later...

I personally loved the part when Itachi asked for sake to the waiter, and Sasuke was like... o.O

What is your opinion about this? Do you think I screw up the character's personalities? Did I make them to open and talkative? I worry about that, although I firmly believe Sasuke and Itachi are each other's exception for everything. Then, Itachi's other exception would be Shisui, and Sasuke's is Naruto, of course. When they are fighting Kabuto together like they did when they were kids… they were so cute!

Now let's talk about Naruto. I hope I haven't offended anyone with his sexual fantasy. In my story, Naruto is very open sexually. He enjoys sex, is not ashamed of it, and he is playful and kinky. And of course, he is in love with Sasuke. I think this fits his canon personally, because Naruto is very tactile in the manga. He is always hugging and touching people, especially from someone with an Asian background. He is also an orphan and felt unloved for most of his childhood. People with those traits usually enjoy sex as a mean to feel close to someone.

The idea of figging, I took it from one Steve/Bucky fanfiction I read the other day.

The story is from one of my favourite authors, OhCaptainMyCaptain. It's called Buck me, here is the link: /archiveofourown works / 2423135

It's an amazing story, and she makes the experience sound way sexier than me. I recommend the story to anyone who appreciates a good Stucky.

And lastly… the great reveal… Gaara is here!

How did he get here? Why did he chose to come here? What happened to him? Why has he passed out?

I accept bets, but you'll have to wait to know for sure.

Thank you again for reading, and hope to read your feedback soon!

Mata ne, tomodachis!


	13. Chapter 13

Konnichiwa watashi no yūjin! Here it is, the new chapter. I apologize because it took a week longer than I intended to publish it. Sadly, my former beta is now very busy with real-life problems (don't we all hate them!?), but **the wonderful IImage agreed to help me from now on**. I think she has done an amazing job, so I hope you all can enjoy it as well. Nyabi also gave me her feedback, so I really got a lot of help this time!

This chapter is a bit different. We change the POW from my golden trip to another three different characters, and we travel to Konoha to find out what's going on over there. It also explains what happened to Gaara, and how did he end up in Naruto's bathroom floor.

Let's get to it, then!

* * *

 ** _Sorry. I'm editing a few chapters of these story with the help of my sister, mainly a few lines I didn't like during the first Sasuke/Itachi confrontation, they were just to OC, and the first few chapters. I'm posting now all the changes, and I had to move a fe_ w _chapters foward - I hope one had any problem while I did it._**

 ** _The truth is that I was reading the story for my own pleasure, and there was several things that I did not like - chapters that were too short, conversations that didn't flow easy enough, overemotional conversation... -, so I'm trying to fix it._**

 ** _But this is the only new chapter I uploaded this week, so I apologize if you got a wrong message in your email._**

* * *

 **Chapter 13.**

 _Konoha: A few hours earlier..._

In only a few weeks, much had changed in the Hidden Village of the Leaf. The Chunnin exams, which had, at first, seemed to be the perfect opportunity to strengthen Konoha's ties to other hidden villages and display the talents of the new generation, had turned into a disaster.

Orochimaru's attack against the village had taken them by surprise, and the worst thing was that he wasn't alone. He had allied himself with The Sand and founded his own the village, The Sound.

Amid the hundreds of deaths that the Sannin had left in his wake, there was one loss that was irreparable: Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage, who had died protecting his people.

The Third had sealed away part of Orochimaru's soul within his arms. He had used a forbidden jutsu that, in the end, had claimed his own life. Kakashi, for all his skills and reputation, had been unable to do anything but stand there and watch these terrible events unfold before his eyes.

Unable to execute seals with his hands, Orochimaru, the coward, had run. An ANBU team had been immediately dispatched to track him down while he was in a weakened state; but they had failed to do so, because even a badly hurt snake was still slippery. Orochimaru would recover and come back one day to finish what he had started, Kakashi had not doubt about that.

But those were distant worries for the future, and there were so many things to take care of right now. First, they had to bury the dead- Dozens of good men and women. Then, they had to comfort their families and reassure the villagers.

Casualties on this scale hadn't happened since the Kyubi had attacked the village thirteen years ago. Panic spread, like wildfire, through the streets. Everybody feared the return of the dark ninja ages, the time of the Great Wars.

Then, once the civilian population was reassured, it would finally be time to take care of the two greatest matters. First, they needed to initiate and sign a peace treaty with Sunagakure, whose Kazegake had been betrayed and killed by Orochumaru, and whose jinchuuriki had disappeared during the battle: Some people talked of desertion, others thought he had been abducted by the snake acolytes. It was only his siblings who seemed truly worried about his disappearance…

Finally, there was the most crucial matter of all, which was the election of a new Hokage; a shinobi capable of leading and protecting the village. After weeks of brutal debate between the clan's heads and the Feudal Lord of the Country, they chose Danzō Shimura. This was a choice which Kakashi didn't feel completely at ease with, as of yet.

He knew the man was loyal to the village, having served it for years as a General of the ANBU forces and, although old, was still skilled enough to dissuade enemies from attacking Konoha. And yet, despite admitting it was a logical choice, Kakashi would rather have one of the Legendary Sannin as the new Hokage.

Jiraya had quickly declined the offer, saying he was more suited for life as a wanderer. The Lady Tsunade's location was a mystery to all, as she had vanished from the village many years ago and swore to never set foot in Konoha again. Kakashi had hoped Jiraya could find her and persuade her to break that oath, but when he had made this suggestion the Sannin had laughed in his face and cryptically answered: "The only one capable of achieving such a feat has chosen a different path for himself."

Moved by lack of other viable options, the family heads of each clan of Konohagure had recognized Danzu as the Goindame and sworn loyalty to him, albeit some with more reluctance than others. Once this private service was concluded, the appointment was made public and Danzo took office in a public ceremony.

Kakashi, despite his private dislike of the man, was relieved when all the proceedings were over. Life in the village could slowly return to normal. He had pressing personal matters to attend, having postposed them for long enough; matters that mainly revolved around his two missing students.

When Naruto and Sasuke had disappeared three weeks before the start of the chunnin exams, Kakashi had become worried. It was unlike them to miss the chance to test their capabilities and to prove their worth in such an eventful occasion. The Hokage had calmed his fears, assuring him that the two gennins were in good hands: Jiraya had come to the village for a night, and requested them for an infiltration mission. Jiraya was Naruto's godfather and the most suited candidate to keep the Kyuubi's seal at bay in case of danger, so Kakashi hadn't put up much of a fight to get them back.

However, as the weeks went by and the first day of the chunnin exams came and went, Naruto and Sasuke had yet to return to the village. Kakashi was growing more worried and became suspicious of the Third's explanation. Something was going on with those two- something serious- and the Hokage was keeping him in the dark about it, even though as their teacher he was the one responsible for their wellbeing.

The very first day after the election process was over, Kakashi searched for the only man who could offer him some answers. He was finally able to confront the Sanin the way he had wanted to do all along.

"Sasuke and Naruto: Where are they?" he demanded, caring little that the shinobi in front of him was even deadlier than he was.

Jiraya looked at him with surprise, and then something like pity appeared in his eyes, "Hiruzen didn't tell you?"

"All he said is that you took them with you for an infiltration mission."

"No," Jiraya shook his head, "I didn't take them with me. My mission was to retrieve them. They left on their own accord."

"Left?" That was the last thing Kakashi expected to hear. It wouldn't have surprised him so much if it were only Sasuke, for this was the way of an avenger, but Naruto? Leaving of his own free will? He couldn't believe it, so he asked, "Both of them?"

"Yes. I know what you are thinking, but it was the two of them," Jiraya assured him. "It's been a very long time since I saw two shinobis so in sync with each other."

Kakashi didn't have time to consider this news. There were more pressing matters, "You found them and you didn't bring them back?"

"I tried," the Sannin answered him calmly, "and I failed. Naruto beat me- if you can believe it. I couldn't even put up much of a fight."

"You are talking nonsense!" Kakashi accused him agrily, which proved his worry for students; that his impassive facade had given way to an angry outburst. "You are renowned sannin. They are just two gennin, who think they are better than they actually are. They won't last a month out there!"

For a moment, it seemed like Jiraya was going to contradict him. He looked sceptical about his words and didn't seem to be worried at all, but then he changed his mind and just shrugged. "You can try to find them yourself," he said. "Last time I saw them, they were close to the frontier between the Land of Sand and the Land of Stone- But heed my words, Kakashi, you won't be able to bring them back."

Kakashi didn't even bother to respond to that. He turned his back to the Sanin and walked away. He already had a destination in mind.

* * *

 _The Hokage's Office_

"Enter." The Gondaime's voice resounded through the door.

Kakashi did so, not wasting time. He walked into the office and kneeled to the floor, which was a formality he had rarely observed with the two previous Hokages.

"Hokage-sama," he greeted respectfully.

The man responded in kind. "Hatake-san. What brings you to my office?"

"Two of my students, Uchiha Sasuke and Uzumaki Naruto," he answered briefly, and to the point, "The Sandaime sanctioned them to leave the village for an undercover mission three months ago. The Sanin Jiraya can confirm this; however, since the Sandaime had passed away, I request permission to find them and bring them back to the village."

The Gondaime paused, seeming to take a few seconds to considered this, "What about your other student? A kunoichi?

This question made Kakashi pause for a moment. He had to admit that in his worry and self-righteous anger about Naruto and Sasuke's disappearance, he had neglected the third member of his team. Sakura had been disappointed to find out that Sasuke had left for a mission without her, and worse, had taken Naruto instead of her. She had asked Kakashi to train her, determined to prove to Sasuke that she could be just as useful in a fight- and he had done so at first.

The problem was that Kakashi didn't know how to teach a girl like Sakura. He favoured a direct approach to teaching, this is, he usually beat up his students until they learned what they were doing wrong. It was a slow, but effective method- or at least, it worked just fine with stubborn boys like Naruto and Sasuke. Kakashi couldn't bring himself to treat Sakura this way. He felt neither her body, nor her mind were strong enough to withstand it.

He taught her how to walk on water instead, which she learned fairly quickly. She was amazingly good at controlling her chakra, perhaps even better he had been at her age. Kakashi had decided to teach her genjutsu, as the natural next step in her training, which turned out to be a disaster.

In theory it was the right decision. Out of the three ninja techniques, genjutsu was the one that required almost perfect control over one's chakra. Sakura seemed ideally suited to it. However, genjutsu was also the most callous weapons a ninja could wield. It was, in essence, a terrible violation of someone's mind. It was a tool that cold-blooded ninjas used to infiltrate their enemies' minds and destroy everything that made up the identity of that person, only leaving behind a mere shadow of whom that person had once been.

To wield genjutsu effectively, a ninja needed to have a killer instinct inside of them, which Sakura lacked completely. Kakashi had overlooked this when he decided to teach her, and he blamed himself for the fruitless days they had dedicated to it.

Her continued failure to learn it properly had slowly killed Sakura's enthusiasm for improving her skills as a kunoichi. She had become more quiet and withdrawn, and Kakashi could've done something about it, but then Orochimaru had killed a whole team of gennins during the second part of the exams, and his attention shifted from his students to the village.

He had been assigned a vigilance post by the Hokage, but then failed to identify Orochimaru in time, who all along had been disguised as the Kazegage. The Hokage had died, because of Kakashi's failure. Kakashi was not going to fail again. Not to his two most promising students and not to the son of the man who had been a second father to him.

Sakura would have to wait until he brought Naruto and Sasuke back to the village, and then the three of them could help the kunoichi to improve her techniques together.

"Indeed," he answered the man, "Haruno Sakura. I consider it best that she remains here, until my whole team is reunited."

The Gondaime agreed, accepting the wisdom of this choice. "Are you aware of the nature of your students' mission?" he asked.

"I'm afraid the Sandaime chose not to share it with me."

Danzo frowned at his answer, looking pensive, "It could be dangerous to pull them out of a mission without knowing exactly what their orders were ..."

Kakashi's heart skipped a beat, but his face remained blank. If the Hokage didn't authorize his leave...

"On the other hand," the Gondaime spoke up again, interrupting his thoughts, "it's highly likely that they haven't yet been made aware of the changes that had occurred in the leadership of the village. We should at least have an account of the goals they are pursuing within their current mission."

He seemed to think about it a few more seconds, and finally he nodded to himself, satisfied with the conclusion he had come to, before addressing Kakashi: "This is what you'll do," he said, "You will find out where your students are and the purpose of their mission. After that, I will leave it to your judgement if they should return with you, or remain at their post until the completion of their mission." He paused for a few seconds and stood in front of Kakashi and his gaze searched the other man's. "Hatake Kakashi-san, do you accept this mission?"

"I do, Hokage-sama," the man answered solemnly.

"Good, then you can depart at nightfall." He dismissed him formally, "Go and fulfill your duty as a shinobi of the Leaf."

Kakashi nodded at him, not wasting words to answer this time, and in a blink, he disappeared from the room. There was no time to lose. He was departing tonight. Naruto and Sasuke had to survive until he could find them.

He had to have faith in that.

* * *

 _Later that day…_

The Hokage left his office soon after Hatake. He was pleased, very pleased, for the events of the day have developed exactly as he hoped. Now it was the time to give the real orders, the ones that would protect the village from its most powerful threats; especially those threats disguised as allies. But he couldn't do that from his office- At least not yet, not when his reign had barely begun and there were so many who seemed mistrustful of him.

He went deep underground, back to his old quarters in ROOT, where his most loyal shinobis waited to carry out his orders. He walked past his former office, down through the hallway, and stopped for a moment in front of one of the cells.

The prisoner inside the cell looked particularly young, with delicate features and dark ginger hair. He was also unconscious. As per the Hokage's orders, several chakra suppressing seals had been engraved into the boy's skin, and he was handcuffed and chained to the wall at all moments. He had also been denied food since he was imprisoned.

To some, such treatment of someone so young would seem cruel, but Danzo did only what he thought necessary to safeguard Konoha's citizens and took no pleasure from it. The Sand Village had attacked the Leaf without provocation, causing hundreds of deaths. The head clans of Konoha would have let this offense go unpunished, thinking that the death of their Kazegake had been retribution enough.

Unfortunately for the Sand, Danzo had foreseen this happening, and had acted quickly while there was still time. He had dispatched his most skilled shinobi to retrieve the jinchūriki while everybody was still busy fighting. It had been surprisingly easy to do. According to the report he had read, the jinchūriki hadn't even joined his comrades in the attack, and was preparing to leave Konoha when his ANBU tracked him down and captured him. There were no witnesses of the feat, which meant that Danzo didn't have to report it to anyone.

Now he had a jinchūriki, a precious tool that would serve him to protect the village, to negotiate with. This jinchūriki was especially crucial these days, considering that Konoha's own jinchūriki was missing and had seemingly deserted the village in the company of the last Uchiha survivor, no less. The mere idea filled his heart with anger, but then he reminded himself that he was in the way of rectifying that now, at least.

"Danzo-sama." That voice brought he back to reality. One of his most trusted subordinates had arrived, and was kneeling at his feet.

"Has there been any progress?" Danzo demanded, no wasting time in pleasantries.

"There has been some, but we are still working to discover how to unmake the seal without killing the subject."

The Gondaime sensed a new outburst of anger rising inside of him, and fought to keep it contained. That was the very problem they had started to work on, but they hadn't still found a solution.

"What if we proceed anyway?" He asked, "Would the subject survive long enough to transplant tailed beast to another shinobi?" A shinobi loyal to the village, and more importantly, one who was loyal to Danzo.

"It's a risk," his subordinate answered sincerely. "We might succeed in creating another jinchūriki, but if the subject dies before the transplant is completed, the tailed beast would die with him. Then it would take years before it is reborn."

"No." Danzo refused this possibility. "We can't afford to lose such power, at least not while he is the only jinchūriki in our possession. You will assign a team of two ninja medics and a seal specialist to work on this case. They might find out something that had escaped you." The ANBU nodded, accepting this order without protest. He did not feel offended, and his pride wasn't hurt. He lived only to serve his general.

After playing with the idea for a few seconds, Danzo went further, "I have a new mission for you: Kakashi of the Sharingan will leave tonight in search of his two wayward students. One is the jinchūriki of Konoha and the other is the last of the Uchiha. Kakashi wishes to bring them back to the village, and to disguise their desertion as an undercover mission assigned by the late Sandaime. I have sanctioned that mission. I have no intention of allowing such desertion to go unpunished."

"Do you wish me to follow him?"

"Yes. Hatake-san is not only their teacher, but also one of the best trackers we have in the village. He knows them and they trust him. Even if they are set on staying away from Konoha, they will have no reason to hide from him. He is our best chance to retrieve what belongs to us."

His subordinate didn't have to ask to know he was referring to the jinchūriki. "What shall we do with the Uchiha?"

Danzo meditated about it for a few seconds. Uchiha Sasuke had to die. If Konoha was to enjoy lasting peace, it was essential to send the whole Uchiha clan to the afterlife. Uchiha Itachi had seen the truth in that as well, but he had allowed his attachment to his brother to cloud his good judgment; sparing his life and going as far as to threaten Danzo if any harm were to come to his brother. Would such weakness still endure? Would the former ANBU shinobi remain so unhealthily attached to his little brother, despite the long years that had passed between then and now?

There was no way for him to know, but he couldn't risk rousing Itachi's fury. Itachi was the one man who could destroy everything Konoha was, and make it so that it could never rise again. Danzo could not afford to turn Itachi into an enemy, which meant there was only one path he could take.

Danzo despised himself for the orders he was about to give, but he had no choice: "Kill Uchiha Sasuke, and have one of your men take his body to Orochimaru,"

The ANBU shinobi raised his head at that, although his mask covered his features and made difficult to know what he was thinking at that moment. "What about his eyes?" He asked, at last.

"Let Orochimaru keep them, but in exchange he'll assume public responsibility for the fate of the boy, and he'll give you the seal we need to transplant the tailed beast from one jinchūriki to another successfully."

The man inclined his head in agreement.

"Take the strongest five shinobi with you, and send another to negotiate with Orochimaru beforehand," Danzo instructed him. "Remember, Hatake Kakashi is a strong asset for the village and I don't wish to lose him. That said, your priority is to retrieve Uzumaki, as the jinchūriki, and kill Uchiha Sasuke, by whatever means necessary. I will leave it to your judgement."

"Danzo-sama," the subordinate accepted the mission respectfully, "It will be done."

The Gondaime gave him a few more instructions and then dismissed him with a few words, "Do not fail me."

As this exchange took place, neither of men had paid any attention to the prisoner in the cell. Even after he opened his eyes for the first time in several days. Neither of them had noticed it when the prisoner regained consciousness after hearing the name of the one person who had been kind to him; the one who had dismissed the lies that clouded his life, and told him the truth that so many had kept hidden.

Neither Danzo nor his subordinate had been aware of the prisoner listening to their conversation, nor the way his hands had started to tremble, then to move slowly towards the necklace hanging from his neck. They didn't see him when he pulled out the chain, and took the necklace to his mouth, where he held it between his teeth.

They didn't hear it when the prisoner sent a prayer to the beast inside his head. Shukaku and the boy had talked before, since Naruto revealed his existence to him, but they rarely got along and were a long way from an alliance. And yet, this time, Gaara prayed silently to him, and neither Danzo or his subordinate heard him.

He prayed to Shukaku to lend him his chakra, just for one moment. The seals that were imprinted on his skin prevented him from using his own chakra, but the one seal that was meant to keep Sakaku's chakra as a prisoner inside his body had always been defective, and the ninjas who had captured him hadn't realized it yet.

If he could just borrow enough chakra to activate the seal from his necklace, the one that Naruto had given him those many months ago. It would take him out of this cell. It would transport him to him.

Sakaku agreed, and the chakra of the tailed beast began to flow in his body and it hurt. It hurt so much. The seals engraved on his skin reacted negatively to the foreign presence, and the pain almost made Gaara pass out again, but he resisted. Those men had orders to retrieve Naruto and bring him here, and then they would torture him the same way they had been torturing Gaara. So he resisted, for Naruto's sake.

Neither Danzo nor his subordinate sensed how the prisoner was slowly, very slowly, accumulating a little chakra in his hands. They didn't see him as he formed the hand-seal that would activate the transportation-seal in his necklace.

They did notice the seals engraved on his body when they began to shine against the darkness of the cell, trying to neutralize their prisoner's chakra. They heard the boy's visceral scream at the pain they were causing him.

It was too late. Gaara's necklace released a blinding light and a second later the prisoner was gone.

They would not be able to find him.

* * *

 _What do you think? Were you expecting it?_

 _Thing is, in cannon, Naruto and Team 7 fight Gaara when he and the Sand attack Konoha. But in this reality, Gaara chose not to fight because of his previous conversation with Naruto._

 _Likewise, in cannon, Jiraya takes Naruto to convince Tsunade to become Hokage. Since Naruto is not in Konoha this time, Jiraya understands that he alone won't be able to persuade her. If Tsunade isn't named Kage, and Jiraya refuses the post as well, the most obvious choice left is Danzo._

 _Why did Danzo decide to capture Gaara? Well, he knows that Naruto has left town with Sasuke, and the village needs a jinchuriki to protect itself. I think going after Gaara would be the logic course of action for him._

 _On the other hand, a few of you inquired about Naruto sexuality in last chapter. Because he is in 12-year-old body, and but mentally he is around 19/20. So I did some research._

 _First, I think Naruto is close to be thirteen now. They've been in the past for 6 months, give or take a few weeks, and in cannon they are thirteen by the time Sasuke leaves Konoha._

 _Also, I investigated in a few forums, and most guys stated there that they started to jerk off when they were between 11-13 years old - some earlier and a few later than that. So it's completely normal for guys (and girls) to experiment sexually and experience sexual pleasure at that age._

 _Most of them do it in private, and experiment alone. They are not mentally ready to initiate a sexual relationship with someone else until they are a few years older, but biologically, their bodies are prepared to do just that._

 _Considering this, Naruto is in the body of a 13 years old (a body that is sexually aware and has sexual desires). But he has the mind of a 20 years old. He has had sex before, and he likes it._

 _So, I'd say that he is both physically and mentally ready for a sexual/romantic relationship, although, as he acknowledged a few chapters ago, any adult who would consider to have sex with him, in his current body, is a sick person. Likewise, he could maybe have sex or sexually experiment with other teenagers (13/14/15), but because he is mentally 20 years old, that would be morally wrong._

 _So, right now, he has three options: jerking off, sexual abstinence, or Sasuke XD_

 _Unrelated topic, what do you think of my take on Kakashi? And Danzo? It's my first time writing those character, and I'm a bit anxious! I don't want to turn them_ _into_ _unidimensional characters. I know Kakashi is the good guy we all love, but he is prone to making some mistakes - like with Sakura here. And Danzo is evil, no other word for it. But still, he has his reasons - often good reasons, to do what he does. It's only that, from a moral point of view, the end doesn't always jusfied the means. And his vision is b_ iased to suit his selfish interest, although he himself doesn't realise it.

 _Well, let me know your opinions and thoughts about this chapter, and I'll see you all soon!_

 _Mata ne, tomodachi!_


	14. Chapter 14

_Hi guys! Sorry, I know it's been a long time since my last update. Honestly, I've been too busy studying for my finals and writing my dissertation, and, as much as it saddened me, I had to take a step back from writing to focus on my university work. It's my last year, and I couldn't risk failing anything if I wanted to graduate this summer._

 _Luckily for me, I'm done. I finished and passed all my exams, and today I submitted my dissertation. I have to wait until the 31th to see if they approve it, but I'm pretty sure they will. So finally, I'm free!_

 _I have this chapter finished for a couple of weeks, but I was waiting until I was done with my classes before updating it here, to celebrate! I want to thank my beta IImage, for her patient and for the great job she did editing this chapter._

 _I try to go back to regular updates every two/three weeks, although it might take me awhile to get use to it. Anyway, I hope the chapter is up to my usual standards and that you all enjoy it!_

* * *

 **CHAPTER 14**

Meanwhile, downtown, Itachi and Sasuke finished their meal and asked the waitress for the bill. The conversation between them flowed easily, and they both relished in each other's company; subsequently, once they exited the restaurant, Sasuke, hoping to prolong the afternoon, suggested a walk through town instead of heading straight back to the hotel.

Itachi acquiesced to his request readily, for he too was reluctant to give up this new closeness with his little brother. They weren't discussing heavy subjects, nor were they sharing their feelings or making great confessions; and perhaps it was precisely that lack of heaviness that made their time together so enjoyable for both of them. They were just two brothers enjoying an afternoon out.

Sasuke talked a little more about his time as a member of Team 7, and then, about the years he had spent as Naruto's flat-mate, once the war had ended and he was back in the village. Itachi, in return, spoke about his time in Akatsuki and his partner, Kisame, and about a few of the things he had done in-between missions.

He told Sasuke how he had come across the Yata Mirror, which had actually been a gift from the daughter of a Lord, who had taken a fancy to him while he'd impersonated one of his father's samurais, and who, all that time, had been using it as a common mirror to do her hair and make-up. And then, he told of all the trouble he had gone thought to retrieve the Sword of Totsuka from a weapons' collector criminal in the Land of Water.

"Wasn't it you who taught me stealing was below an Uchiha?" Sasuke teased him then, recalling a lecture Itachi had given him after Sasuke stole a good-quality kunai from one of the annoying girls who insistently pursued him all the time.

"Ah." His brother smirked, retorting back quickly, "But, is it stealing if you steal from a thief?"

Sasuke couldn't help but to break into laughter; that innocent, uninhibited, sound warmed Itachi's heart.

Sasuke would have engaged him then in a moral debate about the wrongs of stealing, if only to be contrary, but he was stopped by a familiar presence. "Naruto…?" He muttered to himself, surprised.

One second later, his brother sensed it too, "It's not him... this signature... one of his chakra clones?"

Indeed, as barely a few moments later, a clone appeared before them, breathing heavily. He looked troubled.

"What happened?" Sasuke asked.

"It's Gaara." The clone ignored his friend's shocked expression and questions. He hurried to explain, "He appeared in our room—must've used one of my transporting seals to find me. He's passed out in the floor!"

Sasuke frowned. He wanted to know, "How did he come across of one of your seals?"

"I gave it to him," Naruto explained, "but that doesn't matter now. He is passed out on our bathroom floor. He's badly hurt, and I don't even dare to move him." The clone looked straight at Itachi, implored him," That's why Naruto sent me, to get your help. Gaara needs your help."

For all their mighty strength, neither Sasuke nor Itachi had ever mastered the art of healing. Naruto could magically heal people when he was in full Six-Path Kurama mode, but he had yet to master that form in his new body. Besides, he didn't know what was wrong with Gaara, but didn't think it was merely physical. Those shiny black seals engraved in his skin couldn't mean anything good.

Itachi didn't waste time. "Let's go," he said, jumping to a nearby roof and breaking into a run.

Naruto's clone vanished to let the real Naruto know they were coming, and Sasuke followed his brother, arriving to the hotel just a few seconds after him. He snuck in through the window, and walked into the bathroom.

Naruto and Itachi were already there, kneeling on the floor next to the unconscious figure that was the Kazegake - Although, Sasuke reasoned, this wasn't the Kazegage yet. Maybe he never would be. He was just a kid, and he supposed that it was petty of him to dislike him due only to his older counterpart's actions.

He still didn't like him.

While his brother and Naruto hurriedly examined the Sand ninja, Sasuke's eyes scanned the room. The bathtub was still full, which was proof that Naruto had been having a bath when the Sand ninja appeared; this also explained why he was currently wearing only a bathrobe. There was a book in the floor. Sasuke recognized it. It was an Icha-Icha book. Sasuke hummed to himself, amused. It didn't surprise as much as it would have a few years ago, to find out that Naruto was reading the same porn shit than Kakashi carried with him everywhere. He had lived with the man for two years, after all.

Even though Naruto had never brought anyone to their flat at night, there were nights when he hadn't come home. Sasuke hadn't asked. He knew he wasn't seeing anybody from the village, much to Sakura and Hinata distress – and to Sasuke's deep relief and satisfaction – or seeing anyone at all in a frequent basis, for that matter, so he didn't care what the idiot did with his body. He was strong enough to take care of himself, after all.

He also remembered Naruto's comment about missing sex from a couple of months ago. And then, there was the... incident, the one memory Sasuke refused to think about, and one of the main reasons for which he so deeply disliked Gaara.

If anyone had bothered to ask for his opinion, Sasuke would've said that Naruto could read as many dirty books as he'd like, especially if that keep him away from certain people. And yet, he took the book and put it in his pocket with a swift movement. He would tease Naruto with it later, once he was in a better mood

For the moment, Sasuke knelt next to his brother and best friend, and tried his best to sound sincere when he asked, "What's wrong with him?"

"What's not?" Itachi responded back. He sounded angry, truly angry. Sasuke realized why, at the age eleven, he had already been known as one of the most feared shinobi in the Five Great Countries. "He's badly undernourished. It's likely he hadn't been fed in weeks. His body also shows signs of undirected torture. He was experimented on."

Naruto gasped in horror, and, despite himself, Sasuke found himself growing concerned. Itachi didn't relent. "Those seals on his skin... they prevent him from accessing his chakra. Something happened, and they misfired. They're killing him," he concluded. Itachi searched Naruto's gaze with his eyes, "albeit very slowly."

"Can't you do anything?" the blonde man begged, his hand holding Gaara's tightly, his features desperate.

Itachi shook his head, "I'm not a qualified medic. I can keep him alive, for now. I can even heal his wounds and slow down the effect of those seals, but if I try to eradicate them completely, I might trigger something and kill him by mistake. He needs professional help, which is more than I can provide."

Naruto and Sasuke exchanged glances for a moment, and they were both thinking the same thing. "Tsunade," the name came to Naruto's lips naturally.

Itachi frowned, "The Sanin Princess? I thought she had retired from healing."

"She has," Sasuke confirmed, "But Naruto talked her out of retirement once. He can do it again."

The two brothers looked at him, expecting a confirmation, and for a moment Naruto doubted himself. He wasn't the same idealistic boy who wanted to be Hokage, and who was willing to give everything to achieve that dream. Back then, when he had reminded Tsunade of his late little brother, he hadn't yet known what true sacrifice meant. Neither had he experienced the true meaning of loss.

Could he do it again? Could he made Tsunade believe that a kinder and more compassionate world was possible, when he knew that such world would never quite turned into reality? Could he dismiss the pain of the losses that crushed her, when he had experienced that pain in his own flesh now?

He wasn't sure... But then his eyes scanned Gaara's unconscious figure again. Yes, he could do it. He could convince Tsunade that it was better to help those who had been injured than to stand aside and do nothing.

He would make her come here and heal his friend, even if it meant making her face fear of blood. He would remind her that to help the helpless was his brother's and his partner's real dream, and what every person should aspire to do, no matter if they were shinobis or civilians, jinchurikis or villagers, fathers or sons. He would make her remember that she was a good person at heart, and that she was brave.

"I only need to find her," he said with certainty, his right hand tightened over Gaara's.

"Can Kurama track down her chakra?" asked Sasuke.

"From a closer location, perhaps," Naruto answered quickly. "But I already know where she is... or at least where she should be. We came to this universe six months ago." He explained, at the two brothers' questioning glances. "We stayed in Konoha for over two and a half months, and then we left to find Itachi. That was two weeks before the start of chunnin exams. Last time the exams lasted for six weeks, and a month after that, Jiraya and I left to search for Tsunade; and seeing as it's been a little over three months since Sasuke and I left Konoha, Tsunade should be in same place I found her last time, or at least, she should have departed from there only a few days ago."

Sasuke calculated the dates in his head, to make sure Naruto hadn't missed anything. He hadn't. "Okay. Do you remember where did you find her?"

"It was in the Land of Lightening. I don't recall the name of the city. It had a very ancient temple on top of a mountain, though, and I remember Jiraya saying it attracted a lot of visitors because of the pretty priestesses that attends its fire."

"The temple to the goddess Hestia," Itachi identified that description immediately. "It's located in a town called Vesta, around five hundred miles from Kumogakure, near the southwest cost and not far from the Land of Frost."

Naruto listened intently at this information. Overall, it was good news. "I know where it is. If I hurry, I can get to Vesta in a couple of days, tops. I'll bring Tsunade back here," he swore, standing up. He was ready to go.

"Wait a moment!" Sasuke stopped him quickly, grabbing him by the arm before he could jump from the window, "You should to put on some proper clothes first, dobe," he suggested, at which Naruto blushed deeply. He had honestly forgotten he was only wearing his bathtub. "You also can't go alone. We are coming with you."

Naruto shook his head at his proposal, as much as he would like to take them with him, it was not possible: "No. We can't leave Gaara alone in this condition. You must stay with him and make sure he doesn't die before I return." He said, "I'll go put on some clothes. Then, I'm leaving."

Sasuke frowned, not enjoying been ordered around by the blonde. He stared at the bathroom door, through which Naruto had just exited.

"He is right," Itachi's voice distracted him for a moment. He turned to look at his brother, who was still applying chakra to Gaara's body. "This boy cannot be left alone. He wouldn't survive the night."

The younger Uchiha couldn't deny this, and despite his personal feelings about Gaara, he didn't wish to see the future Kazegake die. His death would crush Naruto. And yet, Sasuke still didn't approve of the plan. "I don't know anything about healing," he complained to his brother.

"I do," Itachi assured him. "Which is why I must stay and you should go with Naruto."

Sasuke's body went rigid at such suggestion, "No." He straight up refused. He was not leaving his brother. Not after all the effort it had taken him to find him, and to get their relationship _working_ again. He didn't want Naruto to go alone, either, but he was strong. It's not like the dobe hadn't been on solo missions before. Sasuke was sure Naruto would be fine this time as well.

"Sasuke, I know what you are thinking, but I promised you I'd stay with you, and that's a promise I intend to see through. It doesn't matter if we are parted for a few days, because I will be here when you get back."

His little brother believed him, and yet… "Someone might find you."

"Someone may," Itachi conceded his point, "but we've been here for a month without attracting any unwanted attention. You and Naruto have remained hidden longer than that. The possibly of anyone finding out my identity, and being strong enough to take me out, is close to nonexistent."

Sasuke was torn in two. He didn't want to leave his brother without back up, not when anything could happen to him, as low as the chances of something bad happening were, but he didn't want Naruto to go on his own either, especially considering the amount of people that were after the jinchurikis. The same people, perhaps, that had done this to Gaara.

That thought made up his mind.

He nodded to his brother and Itachi smiled at him, proud of the man his little brother had become. He promised again, "I will be here."

When Naruto returned to the bathroom, properly dressed for a journey, the two brothers presented a united front. "I'm going with you," Sasuke informed him with finality.

"And you should leave a couple of shadows clones behind with me, in case I need to inform you of any change in his condition." Itachi stepped up after Sasuke.

Then an argument broke up between the three of them, but, by the end, Naruto had no choice but to surrender to Itachi's inescapable logic and his best friend's stubborn resolve. "It's also important that you leave here a transportation seal before you leave. That way, once you find Tsunade-sama, you won't need to waste time on the journey back," The eldest Uchiha reminded him.

It was an excellent plan, and deep inside Naruto was quite grateful for not having to part ways with Sasuke anyway, so he didn't put much of a fight and accepted the changes. He also trusted Itachi to take care of Gaara while they were away, and he knew that he could bring Tsunade back here and that she would be able to heal his friend.

There was not time to contemplate failure, or to berate himself from his mistakes or the things he should have done. Right now, his friend's life depended on him, and Naruto would no fail him.

Sasuke and Itachi said goodbye to each other quietly, without actually saying much. Naruto left a couple of shadows clones behind, kneeled next to Gaara for a brief moment and promised his unconscious friend that he would be back with help soon. Then he and Sasuke were gone.

In the couple of months that they had spent in Konoha after traveling to this universe, Team 7 had carried out a few simple missions within the Land of Fire, and Naruto had made sure to engrave his transportation seal in all the different places they had visited. One of them was located near the frontier with the Land of Hot Water, which in turn was only a half day distance from the Land of Lightening.

Naruto transported himself and Sasuke over there, and they agreed to run from that point on; although quicker, it was too risky using Kurama to carry them both. It was likely a few Konoha ninjas were still looking for them, and it would alert them if they sensed the Kyuubi's chakra.

Suddenly, they both were glad that they had taken the day off, because now the chakra reserves were high, and they made through the rest of the day and the night without needing to take a break. By the sunrise of the next day, they were already well into the Land of Lightening. If they kept their current speed, they would reach Vesta just before sunset.

Late in the afternoon, only a couple of hours away from the city, Sasuke suggested to make a short stop and eat some food. Naruto protested at first, determined to reach the city the soonest possible, but then Sasuke reminded him he would need all his strength and wit to persuade Tsunade to follow him.

Naruto settled, and sat on a rock next to Sasuke. He accepted the can of baked beans his friend tossed at him, along with a piece of bread. He opened it slowly, and it didn't look very appetizing, but it was food. He took a couple of chopsticks out of his pocket, and began eating.

"Tell me about the first time you met Tsunade," Sasuke requested after a couple of minutes of them eating in silence.

Naruto was slightly surprised by that question, but complied shortly, putting his chopsticks down for a moment, "I had been traveling with Jiraya for two weeks, searching for her, but I had no idea he was planning to make her Hokage." He remembered, "It pissed me off to find that out, at first. She was a drunk old lady, betting her money away, and I disliked her on principle. And believe me, the dislike was mutual."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, amused to learn that. He had been unconscious when Naruto arrived to Konoha, followed by Tsunade, and his mind had been filled by nightmares of his brother and thoughts of revenge after he woke up. He had left the village not long after, and had never learned the details of Naruto and Tsunade's first meeting, but to his eyes, they had always seemed very close.

The Godaime had stood by Naruto through thick and thin, a fact that had annoyed Sasuke endlessly in the past, but for which he felt very grateful now. Naruto deserved someone to have his back, especially when Sasuke was, so foolishly, trying to stab him.

"We made a bet," Naruto recalled, unware of his friend's line of thinking. "We bet that if I succeeded in learning Rasengan in a week, she would return to Konoha with us, and accept her place as the Hokage."

"And if you'd lost?"

"Then I'd have to give her all my savings…"

Sasuke paused for a second, and then a gorgeous laugh escaped from his mouth. His eyes were shinning, amused and innocent, and, in that moment, he looked beautiful. Naruto's cheeks heated just looking at him, so he focused instead on his bowl of beans. He got a few with his chopsticks and chewed them slowly.

"That's a very strange bet to make," Sasuke pointed out, once his laugh died out. "How much money had you saved at the time? Three thousand yens?"

"Barely." Naruto shuddered, still not looking at him. "I think she wanted to lose, though. She wanted to be proved wrong. Wanted someone to make her believe again."

"Believe in what?"

"Lots of things." Naruto swallowed down another bite of his bread, and reflected about it for a few seconds, "That his brother's and boyfriend's deaths had not been pointless, maybe. That their dream could live on through someone else. That one day, all pointless deaths would stop."

Sasuke seemed to meditate about this for a moment, his gaze far away. "I don't think such things are possible," he concluded soon after.

"But shouldn't it be?" Naruto inner turmoil showed in his face, as he argued the question, "If two persons were powerful enough to hold everyone else at bay, shouldn't they be capable of making such things happen?"

"Perhaps they could," Sasuke agreed. "But to achieve it, they would have to suppress everybody else's free will."

Naruto looked at him them, a frown crinkling his forehead, "Why do you say that?"

"I mean that most people are shitty. I'm not saying that everybody is a bad," he clarified quickly, just before Naruto had a chance to contradict his words. "But humans are selfish and ambitious. Most of us look after ourselves and the people we care about, and turn a blind eye to everything else. This creates conflict."

A long moment passed, and Naruto didn't answer back anything. Immediately, it became obvious that his words had troubled his friend, more than he intended. Sasuke tried to fix it, "Naruto, you have gift to bring out the best of people, but not even you can change human's nature."

The blonde met Sasuke's eyes, then, and they held each other gazes for several seconds. Whatever Naruto saw while looking into those black pupils – the trust, respect, and deep affection that Sasuke felt for him – it made his heart beat lighter, and it softened the heaviness that had weighted down his chest since he had found Gaara's body lying cold on his bathroom floor.

The debate was far from over, but Sasuke saw the wisdom of leaving it for another time, so he opted to change the subject. "How did you win the bet?" He asked instead.

Naruto allowed it. "I almost didn't," he recalled. "I gave it everything I had, and I made a lot of progress, but I couldn't master the technique in time." Sasuke arched an eyebrow. "But then Orochimaru dropped by. He had made an offer to Tsunade as well, and had given her a week to decide, so he came to hear his answer. Things escalated from there."

Sasuke frowned, taking in this new information. "Do you think he'll be here this time?"

Naruto considered it. "I'm not sure about the timing, but he should be near, I guess."

"Then I'll take care of Orochimaru," the Uchiha decided. "You go and deal with Tsunade."

"Are you sure?" Naruto seemed a bit reluctant, but his black-haired friend nodded with certainty.

"I wouldn't be any help to you persuading her, and I have pending matters with Orochimaru. Then, I'll send him on his way and we'll meet outside of town," said Sasuke.

It was the most logical course of action, after all, and Naruto agreed to the plan, albeit reluctantly. Soon they worked out the rest of the details, and then they had to wait until blonde chomped the rest of his beans – Sasuke having finished them long ago – before they were finally able to resume the journey.

They reached Vestia as the sun was setting in the distance, but there was still some light. The temple, that had been destroyed during Jiaraya and Naruto's previous encounter with the Snake, rose above the other buildings. They entered the city through one of its mains doors, and none of the citadel guards blinked an eye.

The first thing they noticed, was the great amount of people filling up the streets. Most people were wearing kimonos, a lot of kids were running up and down, and it seemed like some kind of religious festival was going on.

Frowning with worry, Sasuke turned to catch Naruto's gaze, and their eyes met, "We'll have to be careful, with all these people."

"Yeah," the blonde agreed.

"Do you feel it?"

"Orochimaru's chakra, and Tsunade's, but they are—

"Together." Sasuke completed the sentence for him. "That can't be good for us."

This new development worried them both. They paused for a moment, trying to understand the meaning behind this change, "It's because I'm later than last time," Naruto finally grasped, "If the week is up, and Tsunade took the deal…" Then Gaara was dead and Naruto wouldn't forgive himself.

"We still have time," Sasuke cut his line of thinking, "and our approach hasn't changed. I'll deal with Orochimaru while you talk some sense into that woman's head. Although, I should go there first. I'll drive him away and you'll have your chance, agreed?"

"Agreed."

* * *

 _I know many of you were interested in the undertones between Sasuke, Naruto and Gaara's relationship, and I think this chapters shows very well how that's going to work. But first, I must say it._

 _There WON'T be a love triangle._

 _In mi head cannon, upon which I created this fic, Gaara head over heels in love with Naruto, but Naruto doesn't notice because he is head over heels in love with Sasuke – Sasuke feelings are a bit more complex, but he is both jealous and possessive of Naruto._

 _However, that was in the past. In the past, Sasuke had a reason or two to be jealous of Gaara – we'll see why later on; although Naruto's feelings for Gaara were always friendly, no romantic. In the present, Gaara is a kid and Naruto and Sasuke are in their twenties. Therefore, there will not be a love triangle of any kind between them._

 _Now that I cleared this out, did anyone else enjoy Sasuke and Itachi bickering? I do so love them when they have a chance to behave like normal brothers. And yes, seeing Sasuke jelous is… so kawai! XD_

 _On the other hand, Naruto is having doubts. I know it might seem a little OC, but he is growing up. I think teenagers tend to see the world in black and white, but he is twenty now. He has matured a lot, and he's lived through a war. His vision of the world is ought to have changed, and he is struggling to maintain his convictions – above all, he's questioning himself._

 _And yes, for the next chapter, Tsunade and Orochimaru will make their first appearance in this fic. Any bets about how that is going to come about?_


	15. Chapter 15

_Hello everybody. I didn't intend to update this chapter today. It took me a while to go back to writing this story, after the hiatus I took to work on my dissertation, and I wanted to have a few chapters ready before I started updating again._

 _But, well, today is my birthday. And my friend starlightnorain sent me an email of congratulations, and I thought it would be nice to upload the chapter today, as a way to say thanks to all of you, wonderful people who has been supporting me and this story for the very beginning, more than a year ago._

 _I wouldn't have been able to finish this chapter if not for IImage, who did a marvellous job editing it – and PsychopathOnADiet, whose input I appreciate very much. Thank you, both of you._

 _To everybody else, I hope you enjoy it._

* * *

 **Chapter 15.**

 _A few hours earlier…_

Itachi had never been instructed on the art of healing. It was a field that had never caught his attention, and his father had considered such womanly talents beneath the skills of his firstborn son. However, Pain had insisted that all Akatsuki members had to have a basic set of medical skills, enough to keep themselves or their partners alive in the field, until major help could be found. Right now, Itachi was making use of all the knowledge and skills he had acquired to keep this young boy alive.

Nevertheless, his condition was worsening by the minute.

The seals meant to keep him from accessing his chakra were malfunctioning, and were eating it away instead. Without chakra, vital parts of his body were constantly at risk of collapsing. Itachi was trying to keep his chakra flowing through his body, creating artificial paths that joined his vital organs – but he had been forced to restart his heart once already, and one of his kidneys was definitely failing.

Even if the Lady Tsunade arrived here in time to save his life, Itachi doubted that the poor kid would recover without some damaging long-term effects.

Powerless to do anything else to help him for the moment, his eyes shifted towards one of the clones that Naruto had left behind – the other had vanished a night ago, eager to inform Naruto of all the changes in his friend's condition. His face was unnaturally pale, marked by an expression of anxiety and deep worry.

"Were you very close?" Itachi found himself asking, without having time to censor his thoughts. The clone lifted his gaze to look at him. Exhaustion was clear in his eyes. He hadn't slept at all since Sasuke and Naruto had left.

"Yes," the clone answered after a while. "He was…" not his best friend, for that privilege belonged to Sasuke and only to Sasuke. "He was special. By the time the war ended, I had made many good friends, but none were as dear to me as Gaara. We were the only ones who knew what was it like to be a jinchuuriki; how close we came, at times, to becoming the monsters others took us for."

"I see." Itachi was reminded again of how bigoted, cruel and narrowed minded people could be. The one who had chosen to hurt a child in this way was an example of evil in humanity – but the ones that had shunned him, the ones that had driven him away, both he and Naruto, they were just people.

"We didn't see each other very often," the clone continued explaining. "He was the Kazekage in Suna and I lived in Konoha, but we always made time. He didn't like Sasuke very much. We used to argue about him a lot, but he always respected my choices. He –" his voice cracked. "He loved me."

There was little Itachi could say to that. There was no point in asking if he returned his feelings, as the answer was obvious by his mere presence here. If he had broken his heart – or if he hadn't – it was irrelevant. As irrelevant as discussing the man's feats and sacrifices in his years as Kazekage. The boy laying in this bed was another person altogether, who may never take that path again.

"Go get some rest," he said instead. "You look as if you need it."

The clone shook his head. "What's the point? In a few hours I'll vanish and I won't matter how tired I feel. Naruto will not be bothered by it."

"That might be so," acknowledged Itachi. "But what will happen in a few hours shouldn't be used to dismiss what you are feeling right now."

The clone lowered his gaze for a moment, chastised, but then his bright blue eyes tracked across the room, stopped on Gaara, for a moment, and landed on him. "It's my fault." Itachi met his gaze. "This was never meant to happen. I was meant to fight him off and then show him he wasn't alone, but then I came here and I screwed everything up, and now he's lying here, half dead, and there is nothing I can do for him."

"Is there something you could've done?"

The clone was taken aback by that question, and took a few seconds to answer it. "I– Yes! I could've stayed. I could have not come here in the first place."

"That's true," Itachi said calmly. "I already know the reason for which you came here. Why didn't you stay in Konoha?"

He thought about it for a second. "I knew most of what was going to happen. I didn't want to play God with my friends' lives," he answered honestly. Although it was also true that he had been tired of Konoha. Tired of the pressure to be someone he was not, and tired of playing a role that didn't suit him.

Itachi's expression had turned serious. "A valid reason, then. You assume that coming here gave you the knowledge that no one was meant to have, and you are right in that assumption. Those with too much knowledge, or too much power, often end up oppressing others for what they see as the greater good. The knowledge you and my brother have, knowledge about people, about secrets and events yet to come, it's tremendously dangerous. And it'd be extremely easy for either of you – but especially for you, as you are more invested – to take control of things, of people who weren't born to be controlled. Seeking to protect those people, you may inadvertently take away their free-will – a word by what I mean their right to make choices about the way they live their lives, and even to choose wrong."

"So then… I do nothing? And I let things like this happen…"

Itachi smiled at him, approving of this point. "On the other hand, knowledge also comes with responsibility. To know that someone is going to drown, and not jump in the water to rescue them; to know a child is being abused by their parents and stand idle as it happens; to know there is a murderer in the street, and not open your house to take in those who are running from him. It makes you somewhat responsible for the tragedies that follow, does it not? And yet, such responsibility is as great or small as you wish it to be, for you only have to answer to your conscience."

The clone considered these words for a moment. "So, how do you reach the middle ground? How do you save people without becoming an evil tyrant?"

Itachi's easy smile turned somewhat contemptuous. "I'm afraid I'm not the most suitable person to answer that question. I'm still looking for an answer myself."

That wasn't helpful at all. Itachi had captured, with perfect accuracy, the struggle that had been irking him for years – since the war ended. Or perhaps it would be more accurate to say since he had woken up from that dream, the one who had showed him a glimpse from a reality where he was already the Hokage and most of his childhood dreams had come true, making him utterly miserable.

Before that, and before the devastation of the war, he had always been so certain of the path to follow. He had trained for years to bring Sasuke home, so that they could be together again. He had wanted to be Hokage, so that his worth would be acknowledge by others. He had wanted to get stronger, so that he could protect his precious people. During the war, after finding out the truth about Itachi and realising how deep the corruption ran in Konoha, he had wanted to become Hokage to change the system from its roots.

But if there was something that dream had taught him, it was that the system didn't want to be changed. People were happy to forget about the tragedies of the war; to keep going with their lives as if nothing had changed, and wished to keep doing things the way they had always been done. People had intended to change him instead, to make him fit the role they had prepared for him.

In that universe, Itachi's name had never been cleared. Kakashi had deemed it too late and too dangerous to try and change the official recollection of events. His name was still cursed. Throughout the land he was known as a traitor and kin-slayer. Meanwhile the two elders, who had been involved in the massacre of the clan, had kept their position, and walked Konoha's streets with their chins up – no matter that they had been guilty of manslaughter. They were loved, while Sasuke was hated.

The Hyuga clan, against his explicit wishes and commendations, continued enslaving those from the second branch. It didn't matter that he was the Hokage. It didn't matter that his wife was a Hyuga. It didn't matter that Hanabi herself, the new head of the clan, didn't agree with the practice. The cursed seal was branded on all second-born male children upon the age of three.

Root also kept operating under a different head, and they did not answer to him.

In that world, Naruto might not have had the knowledge of the future, but he was strong. He was one of the two strongest men alive, by a huge margin. The other being Sasuke, who would've supported him anyway. He had the power to change the system, to right its wrongs, and the strength to carry out those changes – no one could oppose him. And all that power was worth nothing.

For, how do you change a system that does not want to be changed? How do you do what you know is the right thing, when those you are in charge of will fight against it? Do you dismiss all their wishes? Do you impose your will upon them? Do you force them to follow your own ideas? What is the right thing to do?

It was a conflict which hadn't even crossed his mind during his youth and childhood. Back then he operated under the belief that most people were good people, and good people wanted to do the right thing - even if sometimes they had to be forcefully shown and guided to it. It was only after the war, once he fully reached adulthood, that Naruto was made aware of how childish his way of thinking had been. The certainty that had accompanied his choices before, never fully returned to him.

Perhaps feeling his conflict, Itachi spoke again. "Naruto, you must understand that no one – no matter how strong or wise they are – can save everybody. To do so you would have to change human nature – and only a God could do that." That was very similar to something Sasuke had said to him a while ago. "But you can save some people. Gaara, for example; we are keeping him alive while you and my brother hurry to bring someone who can help. And these people we save, they will go on with their lives – and they might have children, they might be on their way to save somebody else, or they might just meet a special person one day and change their life for the better. And that's precious."

That made sense. Naruto tried to see things from that perspective. "But what about Gaara? What about those who will be hurt because of my choices?"

"First of all," Itachi responded, "no matter how much you recall about your past, you can't make the mistake of thinking it is our future. It hasn't been since you and my brother arrived. Every action has unpredictable consequences. Some call it the butterfly effect: the sensitive dependence on initial conditions, in which a small change in one state of a deterministic nonlinear system can result in large differences in a later state.

"What I think they mean is that it's impossible to know the consequences of our choices. We can calculate, we can play with the probabilities, but there is always a huge margin for error. You cannot know that staying in Konoha would've prevented this from happening, since you are a different person from when it happened in first place, and people around you would consequently have different reactions to your presence. Perhaps it wouldn't have happened. Perhaps he'd be dead instead of here. Perhaps whoever did this to him would've captured you as well. There is no way for you to know.

"However," Itachi continued. "We can assume that most major events in history haven't changed yet – especially those events who were develop by people away from your sphere of influence. How many people died in the war?"

Naruto had to think about it before he could give a straight answer. The War had caused 684 ninja casualties from Konohagakure, and 13,936 samurais and free fighters from the Land of Fire. In total, from all five big nations, more than 9,000 ninjas had died, around 21,000 samurais, and 12,000 free fighters. And that was discounting any civilian causality. "Over 55,000 people died," he said at last.

Itachi's eyes widened slightly at the weight of such a number, but then he nodded, accepting it. "That makes 55,000 lives then. 55,000 lives that won't be pointlessly wasted. 55,000 lives that will be spared if you prevent the war. Even if your choices since arriving here have altered, for better or for worse, the lives of a few hundred, isn't it worthy to save 55,000 lives?"

Itachi words weren't really comforting – nor were they meant to be. But they were realistic and rang true, and Naruto couldn't bring himself to disagree with them, even if he wasn't ready to agree with them either; not yet, anyway – as childish as it would seem, he had always dreamed of saving everybody, and that dream refused to die.

But 55,000 lives – even if those lives belonged mostly to strangers –were worth a lot. The guilt that weighed down his heart since seeing Gaara in such terrible condition for the first time was still there; it hadn't lifted... but perhaps it had become a bit more bearable now.

In silence, they waited, praying that Naruto and Sasuke could make it back in time with Tsunade – before it became too late.

* * *

 _Back in the present, following Sasuke…_

The dark street was empty, despite the loud crowd of locals and tourists that flooded the city. There were only two people standing in this little corner of the village. Despite their lack of knowledge on chakra sensing, most civilians could still feel the danger. Somehow, they could tell that the two dark figures wandering in the alley were bad news, and wisely, they kept their distance.

He wasn't most civilians, though. Sasuke barely needed to focus to sense every ounce of the powerful, twisted chakra emanating from Orochimaru. Commanding, but not quite natural - tainted by all the experiments he'd carried out in his lifetime. Tsunade's chakra was similarly powerful, yet it had a different taste altogether. Clean and strong. Sasuke could tell it was used mostly for healing, but it felt stiff, which might have been due to a lack of use.

There was another chakra a few streets away – smaller by far if compared to those of the Sannin, but still growing. Sasuke recognized it as Kabuto's immediately, and wasn't at all surprised to find it in the shadow of his master.

Unwilling to waste any more time, Sasuke jumped from the roof and landed a few feet from the two Sannin. They were both caught off guard by his sudden arrival, and immediately took a step back, bodies shifting to defensive mode. It took a couple of seconds for Orochimaru's features to relax, from surprise to recognition. Then to something else - something resembling lust.

That expression wasn't new to Sasuke. He had lived three years under the weight of that gaze. It used to make him feel uncomfortable – unfit in his own body. However, that was a long time ago. Today he met Orochimaru's gaze without fear.

"Uchiha Sasuke," the Sannin acknowledged his presence with a small bow of his head, "I've heard tales of your defection for months… and yet, I'll admit, I did not expect to see you so soon." His voice was deceptively sweet, and his eyes shined with greed, "Have you come looking for me, Sasuke-kun?"

"Sasuke will suffice." Sasuke corrected him, ignoring his question. "or Uchiha-san. There is a matter I need to discuss with you, in private."

Orochimaru's soft laugh echoed in the alley. Sasuke was just a kid in his eyes – barely thirteen. He took his words as a pompous attempt at playing older. And yet, the memory of his defeat at the hands of Itachi weighed heavy on his mind. He would not underestimate an Uchiha again – not even if it was just this youngling with a bark worse than his bite.

He acquiesced, "As you wish, Sasuke. There are matters that I also wish to address with you. However, would you be so kind as to give me a few moments with the Lady Tsunade, first? I'm afraid I sustained considerable injuries during my last confrontation, and she is the only one who can heal me now."

Tsunade, still tense, who had been watching their exchange in silence, spoke at last, "You're a traitor to Konoha, then?" Her voice was full of contempt and she looked at Sasuke with narrowed eyes. "Figures. Another turncoat Uchiha."

Sasuke felt the old, familiar, turbulent, rage awakening in his heart – as it happened every time anyone dared to speak ill of his family, of his brother. But it was much easier to control his fury this time – the fire in his chest not hot enough to overcome him. Itachi was fine. He was waiting for him at home. And he was here for Naruto, who trusted him.

"I'm no more a traitor, than you are," he answered Tsunade calmly. "I, too, left the village, but do not seek to destroy it." His eyes stopped pointedly on Orochimaru as he spoke those words. "My brother is far more loyal than any of us here could aspire to be."

"Really?" She was obviously disbelieving of this, but Sasuke ignored her. He fixed his gaze on Orochimaru, who was watching him now with caution. "I'm leaving, and you won't find me again. It's up to you, if you wish to follow me."

True to his words, the young Uchiha turned his back to them, jumped, and disappeared amongst the many roofs that surrounded the alley. He did not look back, nor did he stop until his footsteps carried him out of the city to a near hill by the edge of the woods. He knew the old Sannin too well. He knew his thoughts, the way his mind worked. He knew Orochimaru would follow him.

His insight was proved right barely a minute later.

The Sannin approached him, and he did not look as happy as before. "You better speak quickly, Sasuke. Tsunade is not known for being a patient woman. It's not wise to give her time to change her mind."

Slowly, Sasuke eyed his old master from head to toe. His face was still creepy, and his skin was even paler than usual. His body didn't reflect his normal strength, and his arms hung dead at his sides, as they couldn't be moved at all. Useless. Sasuke's lips curved into a disdainful smile, "You look pathetic."

Orochimaru glared. "Careful now, boy," he warned, "I do not need my arms to put you in your place."

"You are wrong," Sasuke replied calmly, "You are weak. Even with the use of your arms, you are still weaker than me. Despite all of your experiments, you still couldn't beat the power of a true Uchiha." Sasuke activated his Sharingan, and his eyes changed from their usual black to the that blood red. The pattern diversified, denoting the Mangekyou. Orochimaru looked on, unimpressed. Sasuke smirked, the purple of the Eternal Rinnegan bloomed in his eyes.

"Impossible!" Orochimaru stepped back, his eyes wide open, and a sudden expression of fear upon his face. "That power was lost!"

"And yet, it was bestowed upon me by a God," Sasuke replied with a smile, enjoying the tremor that shook the body of his old master. "Hagoromo might have been an old fool with a bleeding heart, but he was most generous for those he considered family."

"Hagoromo? You mean… The famous Sage of Six Paths?"

"Indeed," Sasuke nodded.

"He is but a legend," Orochimaru protested weakly, and yet, it was clear to Sasuke that he believed him: His eyes were shining, his expression greedy, but it was not Sasuke he was lusting after, this time. He was thirsty for knowledge. Orochimaru's greatest weakness. Where he found his greatest strength.

"The man is real," Sasuke assured.

"And he… gave you those eyes?"

"He did. And he also left another gift for another. He had two sons, a long time ago – before they died fighting each other. And he came to believe that we were them reincarnated – that we embodied his sons' souls in our bodies."

"And do you?"

Sasuke shrugged. "I really don't care, one way or another. Perhaps we were them, once upon a time," he admitted, although he did not like to think about it, "But we are who we are now, and neither of us would change ourselves."

Orochimaru didn't look very satisfied with that answer, and for a moment there, it seemed as he were to insist on the matter. However, he changed his mind at the last second, and asked something completely different. "Why did you seek me out, Sasuke?"

Sasuke stared at him for a moment before answering, "I came to give you a warning, and a parting gift."

"Oh?" Orochimaru's features didn't betray him this time. "And what will you give me first?"

"The warning, of course," he answered quickly, a smirk upon his lips. "From now on, you will leave Konoha alone. You will stop killing people in your experiments. And you will never, ever, threaten my brother again – not in any way."

The Sannin didn't look happy at all with those terms.

"And if I don't?"

"Then I'll kill you," Sasuke stated simply.

"I see I don't have a choice…" the old ninja complained.

"You don't," Sasuke agreed with him. "You value your life above all else. You've carried out hundreds of experiment just to prolong it. You've set up failsafe upon failsafe, just to make sure that there will be a way for you to come back, when you die. But none of it will save you. If you cross me, I will send your soul to a place from where there is not return."

Orochimaru stared at the boy in from of him. He was not – could not be – all he seemed. He was both beautiful and youthful. He was blessed with the face of an angel and a body of perfect dimensions. He looked little like his brother, who was also beautiful but in a darker, manlier way. Sasuke's factions were finer, his face more delicate, his body petite, and yet, the boy carried a strength with him that was unusual on most men. Orochimaru had dismissed it as overconfidence at first – a severe mistake on his part.

Only now, after been threatened by him, could he see that the beauty of his face was only a façade, and whatever being lurked behind it was dangerous, threatening, like Death himself - even for Orochimaru, one of the Legendary Sannin.

"I find your terms acceptable." He was not happy about these concessions, yet, instead of anger or defeat, there was a sense of deep fascination growing within him as he watched him. Sasuke nodded, once, he said "good", and then fixed his eyes upon a spot a few feet for him. His hands moved quickly, forming a few seals.

From nowhere, an imposing figure appeared. The creature fixed his angry gaze upon Sasuke, who didn't look away. At the contrary, he seemed to command it.

"Meet Yama, the King of Hell," Sasuke spoke proudly. "Emma, the Monkey King, who was summoned by the Third is but one of his servants." He stared at the creature again, communicating with him in silence, and then, very slowly, the figure opened his mouth and a small, shining turquoise light emerged from it and fled straight to Orochimaru.

Sasuke bowed his head to the creature, and it disappeared soon after. Orochimaru didn't notice. His eyes were fixed upon his arms. He could feel them! He could move them again! "What did you do?"

"I retrieved your soul from the Underworld. Or, more accurately, I ordered the King of Hell to return the piece of your soul that the Monkey King had locked away."

Orochimaru stared at him in wonder. "You command the Dead?"

"There is nothing that my eyes don't command now, if so I wish it," stated Sasuke. "This is my gift for you. Tsunade couldn't help, even if she was truly willing to try, but I could. Your soul is once again yours, as long as you abide by my terms."

The threat wasn't subtle, but Orochimaru couldn't care – not while this beautiful enigma stood before him. "I've given you my word, and I shall stand by it," he vowed.

Sasuke acknowledge this, with a bow of his head. He turned his head to the trees behind them and said to no one in particular, "My terms apply to you too. I know you are listening, so come out now."

For a moment, no one came, but then a familiar figure appeared at the edge of the woods and walked up to meet them. Orochimaru wasn't surprised to see Kabuto had been spying on them, but it bothered him that he hadn't noticed his presence, whereas Sasuke had been aware of it the whole time. Was it possible to hide anything from those eyes?

"I'm not afraid of you," the stupid teenager stated once he had reached them. His chin was up and his features defiant, as he looked at younger boy.

Sasuke didn't lose his temper. He even looked bored at the turn of conversation. "Then you are a fool," he retorted calmly, "Even more foolish than I thought." He smirked again. "I see you, Kabuto. My eyes see you. There is nothing you can hide from them. And that's exactly what you are, nothing. I could kill you now, and no one would cry for you. No one would miss you, and you'd die without knowing who you truly are. Nothing but a nameless grave."

Orochimaru saw Kabuto open his mouth to reply, but no sound came out of it. There was a growing horror in his eyes. Orochimaru had never seen his young pupil so shaken before. What sort of power lay in those eyes? A single look was enough to make their owner privy to the most private thoughts and fears of those he looked upon.

"Don't worry," Sasuke smiled. "I'm not going to kill you this time. The man who ruined your life is the same man who ruined mine, and someone I care about was invested in your survival, so, you get a one-time pass. Same deal for him," he nodded to Orochimaru. "Break it and I'll kill you. Do you understand?"

Kabuto nodded. "I understand."

"Good. And stop playing copy-ninja with Orochimaru. It's creepy like hell. You are not going to find your identity copying others. Stop being such a coward and go find it in the place you lost it. Or better yet, stop obsessing about who you were, and start thinking about who you want to be. You are not the only one who had to build his identity from scratch; although, I guess, that is because we don't suck at it like you do," he concluded with an arrogant expression upon his features.

A moment later, he turned his head to the right, his face neutral again, as if he were focusing on something. He paid them one last look. "Remember my warning, and be prepared for the consequences," he said. Then he turned his back to them, and was ready to go. The Sannin knew he wasn't going to see him again.

"Sasuke, wait!" Orochimaru called him without thinking. The boy stopped, but did not turn his body. He looked at them over his shoulder, an eyebrow arched. "All that power you have now, what are you going to do with it?"

He shrugged, disinterested. "I haven't decided yet."

It was an honest answer, but it wasn't enough. "And if I wish to find you?"

"Amegakure would be a good place to start," he admitted.

Orochimaru's eyes widened slightly, "The Akatsuki? You are going to join Akatsuki?"

"We are going to take over the Akatsuki," Sasuke corrected him emphatically. "Their plan is stupid and will lead to war. Besides, I have pending matters with one of them. Is that all?"

He was growing impatient. It was easy to see. As much as Orochimaru would wish to keep the conversation going, there was only one more thing he had to tell him. "Konoha - I don't think they are as fond of you as you seem of them," he warned him.

"Oh?" This time, Sasuke looked more interested.

"The Hokage made me an offer not too long ago," the Sannin explained. "Your body, along with your eyes, on the condition I publicly claim responsibility for your death."

"I see." It came as a surprise, in a way. Sasuke hadn't thought the old Hokage capable of ordering the murder of someone as young as he believed him to be. Then again, he had stood by and watched as a teenage boy was blackmailed to murder his entire family – men, women and children – all in one night, just to save his little brother's life. "I suppose they'll have to kill me first," he joked, smirking dangerously. "Our deal stands as it was. You break it, and I'll kill you."

With that last warning, he vanished from their sight.

* * *

Naruto waited impatiently for Sasuke to join them. His confrontation with Tsunade had been long, and the words they had exchanged sharp and cutting. At the end, the old lady had agreed to accompany him and do her best to heal Gaara – although they both were still wary of each other.

For a moment there, his heart yearned for the old Tsunade that he had left behind in the other universe. She had been his ally through thick and thin; had stood by his side when even his most loyal and oldest companions had deserted him. She had been family. In a way, the most similar thing to a mother that Naruto had ever known – even if the role she had played in his life was more of a close aunt.

She had understood when he decided the life of a Hokage wasn't for him, and she had given him her blessing to look for happiness away from Konoha, and away from their world – even if that meant they would never see each other again. They had said their goodbyes, and she had seen right through him – going as far as to tell him that perhaps Sasuke's heart wasn't so far from his as he thought. In a village where the Uchiha was met with suspicion and barely concealed hate wherever he went, those precious words had meant everything to Naruto.

However, that had been a long time ago. The woman standing by his side now was nothing like the woman he had left behind. The woman at his side had the same character, the same courage, the same annoying habits, yet she didn't love him. She didn't even know him. And that made her a stranger.

Finally, Naruto sensed Sasuke's chakra approaching the alley. His face was carefully neutral as he walked to meet them, not giving away any of his thoughts, but Naruto knew him too well. He saw, in the way he held his chin and in the way kept his eyes staring at the front, that he wasn't feeling as well as he seemed.

Sasuke had exhausted his chakra, and was making use of a forbidden technique that masked this exhaustion masterfully. He asked, "Are you okay?"

"Fine," he said. But that answer wasn't enough for Naruto, who kept looking at him worriedly. "Nothing a chakra pill won't solve." He added at his friend's insistence.

Finally, Naruto nodded. Tsunade, tired of this exchange, walked up to Sasuke. "Where is Orochimaru?"

"Back where I left him, I suppose. He doesn't need you anymore. And he won't cause more trouble for us."

"You meant to make me believe you chased him away?" She asked in an incredulous voice.

Sasuke shrugged with indifference. "Believe what you will," he said. "As long as you are coming with us…" He looked at Naruto, who nodded. "Well then, shall we?" He reached out his hand to Naruto and grasped him firmly by the shoulder. He turned his head to look at the medical ninja.

"What?" She arched his eyebrow at him.

"You need to grab me by the shoulder," Naruto explained to her. "It'll be quicker this way."

If anything, this explanation only served to increase the incredulity that shadowed her features. She stared at both kids as if they were jesting. And yet, she did as he bid her. If only to see where this whole pitiful joke was going.

Once their hold on him was secure, Naruto moved his hands to form the seals that would activate the Transportation Jutsu. A few second later, they were gone.

* * *

 _Well, what do you think? It was difficult to go back to writing those characters after such a long break, but I hope I did a good job._

 _The first part of the chapter was really focus on Naruto's development. Some of you had asked me why he was acting so hesitant and doubting himself, when he was so determined and confident in the manga. This is my answer._

 _The thing is, in the manga, there is a huge change between Naruto's behaviour and personality before the war, and a few years after it. In the epilogue and in Boruto he acts so out of character, saying and doing things that he would have never done before, that I often wonder why, how could it happen?_

 _This is kind of the answer I came up with. Teen Naruto was stubborn and self-confident, but he often saw the world in black and white. He believed good guys were good guys, bad things were bad things, and bad guys had honest reasons to be bad, and could be turned into good guys. And his experiences supported this way of thinking._

 _But I think it probably shattered after he came into adulthood and was pushed into taking more adult responsibilities. And judging by what I've seen of Boruto (I'll admit it, though, it hasn't been much), it seemed to me that he was never able to bounce back after this crash against reality._

 _So this is going to be the challenge for him in this story. If Sasuke is learning how to develop an honest relationship with his brother, and eventually, how to be part of a romantic relationship with Naruto, and Itachi is learning how to live with himself and how to accept Sasuke's (and eventually, others') forgiveness and love for him, Naruto's challenge will be this._

 _He now sees the world as an adult, and many of his childhood's beliefs about people and the way the world works had been crashed. So, he needs to find a way to see the world for what it is and, still, remain faithful to his belief that it can be turned into a better place._

 _I think this conversation with Itachi helped him a little, but we'll see how he continues growing as the story progresses._

 _On the other hand, I love writing about him with Itachi. They are very similar in ways that Sasuke and he are not, so I think there are lots of opportunities for them to become close friends – beyond their mutual love and affection for Sasuke, that is. And yeah, I love writing Orochimaru and Sasuke as well. Their interaction was a lot of fun for me._

 _So, what do you think? I love to read your thoughts and opinions about this chapter. And please, feel free to wish me a happy birthday._

 _Lots of love,_

 _Anzu._


	16. Chapter 16

_I want to thank my beta for this chapter, PsychopathOnADiet, who has done wonders with this chapter. I also want to thank all the readers for the support I received in the last chapter. I means a lot to me that this story is been read by so many people, and especially for those who lent me their support in their comments._

 _I hope you enjoy the chapter!_

* * *

 **Chapter 16**

It took only a blink. One moment the three of them were in a dark alley in the city of Vesta, and a second later they reappeared thousands of miles away. The clearing they showed up in was the same clearing they used for training; the woods overshadowed the merchant city in Earth Country where Naruto and Sasuke had been living for months now. Weeks ago, Naruto had engraved his Transportation Seal in a near tree, just as a failsafe in case of emergency. Back then, he hadn't imagined he would be forced to use it so soon and under such dire circumstances.

As soon as they landed, Naruto felt the hands on his shoulders vanish, Tsunade's with much more violence than necessary. He turned around - she was extremely pissed.

"What the fuck have you done?" she demanded, her eyes scanning the new surroundings with suspicion. "And where the fuck are we?"

"We are in Earth Country," Naruto explained quickly. "Gaara is in the next village, about five miles away. I use a Transportation Jutsu to bring us here. It saved us a three day journey."

Tsunade looked at him, disbelieving. "Transportation Jutsus don't work like that."

"My father's does," Naruto argued.

She arched an eyebrow at him. "Your father…?"

"Minato."

"Oh. So you know about that…" She was obviously surprised by the information.

"We suspected. Jiraiya confirmed it."

"You met Jiraiya too?"

"He's my godfather," Naruto remarked. He didn't wish to recall that encounter, but knew that mentioning it would do wonders to earn his trust. "And you were his teammate."

She stared at him a bit longer, and just as he suspected, the mistrust that had shaded her features faded noticeably. "Alright, brat," she conceded. "Take me to your friend."

It took them five minutes to arrive at the hotel. Sasuke and Naruto both used the Transformation Jutsu before approaching the village, returning to their old disguises just in case they were noticed by someone. They entered the Ryokan through the main door, and Naruto spent a few seconds greeting the receptionist.

Considering Gaara's delicate condition and the fact that they still didn't know who had imprisoned him, it was even more crucial than usual that they didn't raise any suspicion. It was highly likely that the person who had tortured him also sent several trackers after him, and as much as Naruto wished to confront them and make them pay, his friend's safety scored higher than his wish for revenge.

Tsunade played along for the moment, trailing after them until they reached their room. Naruto knocked the door first, and then used his own key to open it before entering. Sasuke and Tsunade followed him inside.

The room was empty except for the futon Gaara was lying on and the two figures that surrounded him. The rest of the futons and most of their clothes and belongings were carefully folded in the closet – maybe to give the unconscious boy more breathing space. Itachi was kneeling next to the redhead, his hands glowing with healing chakra. Naruto's clone was sitting a few feet away from them.

Both of them turned their heads to look at the newcomers, and then the clone vanished. Naruto's gaze immediately went to Gaara. Sasuke also eyed the jinchuuriki for a few seconds, and was relieved to see his chest moving up and down – proof that he was still alive – but then his eyes searched for his brother's.

Itachi returned his gaze. His face was pale and he looked worn out, about as exhausted as Sasuke felt. But when his eyes met Sasuke's, the weary features of his face softened, and his lips curled into a little smile just for him. Sasuke returned it. The tension of his muscles, tension he had been holding without realising it, faded away. He was home again.

Unfortunately, the peaceful feeling didn't last more than a moment.

"Uchiha Itachi," Tsunade recognized him, her eyes wide and her mouth open with unconcealed horror. Her body had adopted a defensive position. Itachi's body stiffened as consequence, as did Sasuke's, but Itachi didn't move. Sasuke stepped forward, carefully blocking his brother from her sight. "What the fuck?" Tsunade continued, her eyes moving from Naruto to Sasuke, an expression of alarm on her face. "What kind of fucked up game are you playing? He's the one who slaughtered your family, kid."

Itachi flinched. It was a very small movement, one that would've gone undetected by most people. However, Sasuke was not most people. He narrowed his eyes. "Shut the fuck up," he commanded. "You have no fucking idea what you're talking about."

Seeing a fight about to break out, Itachi forgot his own discomfort and made his muscles relax again. "Sasuke," he called him off, shaking his head slightly. Sasuke diverted his gaze from Tsunade to glare at his brother, angry that he wouldn't even allow Sasuke to defend him.

"It doesn't matter now," Itachi said calmly. "Gaara needs help."

Then, still kneeling on the floor, he looked up to Tsunade. "They put three seals on him to lock away his chakra. One on his forehead, one on his chest and one on his stomach. There are also two minor seals, one on each of his wrists. They all misfired. The minor seals burned out the chakra coils in his hands, but do not pose an immediate danger to his survival. The three main seals, however, are preventing his chakra from flowing naturally through his body. As consequence, most of his vital organs are failing," he summarized as precisely as he could. "I've kept my chakra flowing through his body for the last three days, but his heart has already stopped twice and his left kidney is badly damaged. There isn't anything else I can do. The seals need to be removed and the chakra coils immediately rebuilt if he is to have any possibility of surviving."

"I can do that," Tsunade admitted, although she was still suspicious. She had decided long ago that her duty as a doctor would always hold priority over her responsibilities as ninja of Konoha. There was no doubt that the boy on the futon was in need of her help. Still, her feet would not move.

Uchiha Itachi was an S-rank criminal. A monster. A psychopath who had killed his whole clan _as a teen_ , with the exception of his little brother – the same brother who, for some reason, seemed so keen to protecting him now. If the rumours were right, he was also a member of a dangerous organization of killers. It was her duty to kill him. Even if she had left behind her life in Konoha, killing him now would mean saving thousands of others that he would kill later.

"Please!" Someone begged. It was the blond boy. Tsunade turned her face to meet him. Naruto's earnest blue eyes found her gaze, pleading. It upset her. His eyes were too similar to what she remembered of her brother's. "Please, you have to help him!"

She didn't answer. Across the room, Itachi rose to his feet. Tsunade's gaze was on him in an instant. As if sensing the reasons behind her hesitation, he moved slowly – his posture as far from threatening as it could possibly be. He walked across the room, keeping distance between them, and reached the door. "If you can help him, you'll have my gratitude," he stated calmly, with a slight bow of his head. Then he left the room.

Immediately, some of the tension from her muscles faded away. She sighed with relief. As confident as she was in her abilities, she wasn't sure she could win against the eldest Uchiha. She could not let him go, but she didn't want to die. Now, by walking away, he had taken the decision away from her hands, and she could focus on saving the dying boy.

Obviously the other Uchiha didn't see things the same way as her. His expression was dark as he glared at her. She had the impression that he wanted nothing but to follow his brother, and the only thing keeping him here was an honest concern, not for the unconscious red-headed boy lying on the futon, but for the blond – whose eyes hadn't move from Gaara and looked close to collapsing from worry for his friend.

"Well?" Sasuke nudged her.

Ignoring his prodding, she walked towards the red-headed boy and knelt beside him. It took her several minutes to assess his condition. To her surprise and mild distaste, the eldest Uchiha's previous assessment proved to be correct in all points – including the seriousness of the condition. It would take her all her skill to save the boy, and it was impossible to say what the repercussions would be.

"I can save him," she resolved with determination, holding Naruto's gaze. "It will be hard, and it will take a long time, but he will make it. You have my word."

Tears of relief flooded the boy's eyes.

Tsunade turned her face away from it, focusing again on her patient. After a few moments, Naruto and the younger Uchiha began discussing something, but their voices were too quiet and Tsunade could not make out their words. A minute or two later, she heard footsteps and the door opening and closing behind her,but she could not turn around to see if she had been left alone, as her patient required all her attention.

She didn't have to wonder for long, though. Just as the door closed, Naruto approached her and knelt next to them – taking Gaara's left hand into his. Tsunade continued to work on healing the unconscious boy in front of her. Neither of them spoke for a long time. When his gaze finally met hers, she felt she had to warn him.

"You will have to explain."

To that, he only nodded. "Later," he promised.

* * *

Sasuke closed the door behind him and began walking down the stairs. He was physically exhausted – a consequence of using the Rinnegan to restore Orochimaru's soul to him – and the conversation with Tsunade had done nothing but sour his mood. At least she would do something right and save Gaara. His death would have destroyed Naruto.

He could sense Itachi's chakra coming from the roof. No doubt, his brother was torturing himself, allowing his guilt to eat him away. He wanted to go straight to him and dismiss Tsunade's accusations as product of ignorance, but he had to be practical. Itachi spent the last three days keeping Gaara alive, most likely discarding his own needs for food and sleep in favour of taking care of the boy. It was time for Sasuke to take care of his brother.

He reached the main hall, and approached the receptionist. He greeted her politely, and then asked for a new double room, paying in advance for the next two weeks. The girl – he still could not remember her name, no matter that Naruto had told him a few days ago – smiled at him and asked him if they had visitors. Irritated by her smile and her prodding but aware of the need to remain inconspicuous, Sasuke explained how their aunt and her son had come to stay with them for a few weeks. Her son – their nephew – had fallen ill, and their aunt hoped the healing properties of the onsen would help him to recover his health.

The girl's face showed honest concern as he told her. She recommended a few natural treatments that were famous in the village and frequently requested by travellers, going as far as to write down the address of her personal doctor for him. Finally she gave him the keys to the requested room, and wished him luck for his nephew's recovery.

Sasuke thanked her, took the keys, nodded at her, and left. He was tired; he didn't like talking to most people, and he didn't like her personally – although he couldn't recall the precise reason for his dislike. It was nice to be reminded that there were decent people around in the world – people who worried about strangers, and people who offered their help to those who needed without asking for anything in return. Of course, the majority of these people weren't ninja.

He took the stairs again and walked up to the roof where he easily spotted Itachi. His brother wasn't even hiding. He was sitting down with his legs hanging from the edge of the roof with a pensive look on his face.

Itachi sensed him approaching and turned to look at him. "You should be with Naruto," he said as a greeting.

"Naruto is fine," Sasuke dismissed his advice. "He's staying with Gaara and Tsunade until she's finished healing him. I'm hungry and tired. I rented another room for us. Come on." Standing next to his brother, he reached out to him with his hand to help him rise to his feet. Itachi considered it for a moment, before accepting the gesture. "I also ordered dinner," Sasuke continued. "It should arrive shortly."

They walked down the stairs side by side. Their new room was located on the same floor as the old one but in the left wing of the Ryokan, as opposed to the right. Two futons were already lying on the floor on one side of the room. The other side had a small table without chairs, a closet, and the bathroom.

Seeing as the food hadn't arrived yet, Sasuke opened the closet and borrowed one of the kimonos that were hanging inside. "I'll have a quick shower," he told his brother. He was sweaty after three days of running without a break, and his clothes would need to be washed in the morning. The kimono would do for the night.

He undressed and showered quickly. The water felt very nice against his skin, and it calmed the ache of his muscles a little. However much he enjoyed it, though, he kept his word and finished up quickly. As he exited the bathroom, he glanced around until he saw Itachi sitting on the floor next to the table. "You should have one too," he said to him, moving to set aside his clothes.

His brother nodded, accepting the wisdom in the statement. Gracefully, he rose to his feet and borrowed the other kimono from the closet as he walked into the bathroom. When the food arrived, he was still showering.

Sasuke laid the dishes on the table, and poured some sake into two glasses. Itachi came out soon after. They ate dinner in silence, seeing as they were both too tired to establish a conversation. Despite the silence, though, the atmosphere felt comfortable, just the two of them sharing a meal after a mission.

Once they finished eating, they moved the empty dishes to the hotel tray and Itachi took it outside, where it would be collected.

"Come on," Sasuke nudged him, once he was inside again. "It's time for bed."

"Perhaps I should stay awake, in case anything goes wrong..."

"Nothing will go wrong, she is a good medic," Sasuke argued. Even though he disliked her, especially this version of her, he could admit that much. "Besides, you looked like shit."

Itachi's lips curled into an ironic smile. "Well, thank you, Sasuke."

Sasuke didn't back off. "No offense, but you do. You need to sleep."

Seeing the determined expression on his brother's face and the stubbornness of his gaze, Itachi gave up this fight. In truth, he did feel tired, more than he should. He had trained his body to function for several days without sleep without lowering its efficiency. It was an occurrence that happened quite frequently as a missing-nin. By comparison, three days should have barely registered.

However, during those three days Itachi had been constantly sharing his chakra with another person, and his stamina had never been the highest if compared to the handful of ninjas that were at his level. Sasuke was right, he needed to rest. His brother also seemed determined to force rest upon him if he resisted.

"Very well," he accepted at last.

Not completely swayed by Itachi's words, Sasuke tracked his movements as he approached the futon, opened its cover, and finally, laid down on it. Aware of his brother's scrutiny, Itachi met his eyes. "Satisfied?"

"Yes," Sasuke asserted. He approached his own futon, which was just a few feet from Itachi's, and laid down as well. He didn't say anything else.

Itachi stare at his brother. The lights were off. Only the sunset light that entered the room by the window illuminated the room. It was not enough to distinguish his brother's features, only the shape of his body. As he looked at him, a warm, overwhelming feeling began swelling in his chest. How long had it been, he wondered, since the last time someone had put so much effort into taking care of him?

Had it been his mother, before he joined the ANBU? Before they had allowed the clan politics to erode their trust in each other and to come between them? Once upon a time, before he even began the Academy, she used to tuck him into bed and kiss his forehead every night before wishing him sweet dreams.

Had it been Shisui, back in the days when they were still working together side by side, both of them deluded in the belief that there could be a peaceful solution to the conflict within their clan?

In truth, it didn't matter. The past was long dead, gone with the wind. Sasuke was here now - his little brother who _loved_ him enough to forgive him and send him to bed when Itachi's stubbornness would prevent him from resting.

"Good night, Sasuke," Itachi whispered to the darkness of the room.

The answer came a few seconds later, in another whisper.

"Good night, onii-san."

* * *

Unfortunately, Gaara's condition was as serious as the Uchiha had described it. Removing the seals that had been branded on his body was a challenge in itself, but doing so while artificially maintaining the flow of chakra throughout his body was one of the most complex operations Tsunade had to carry out in her career as a healer.

She had worked on the boy for two days and two nights and had been close to losing him once – just as she was about to remove the last of the main seals, it had misfired again, sending the boy into shock. One thing was clear; whoever had done this to him had taken every precaution to make sure he didn't survive if he managed to escape.

Any lesser med-nin would have lost the patient.

Relieved that it was finally over and that the boy would live, she turned to look at Naruto. He hadn't left Gaara's side since she started working on him. He had taken a few short naps in the room with them and had eaten the food that the young Uchiha brought for them three times a day, but otherwise he hadn't moved from his spot.

"It's done," she announced. "There is no trace of the seals, and all of his chakra coils are working again."

Naruto looked so relieved and grateful that it almost made her feel uncomfortable – she had come close to denying him her help, after all. "And he'll be fine?" He questioned her.

"Yes, he will fully recover," she reassured him. "Keep in mind that his body is exhausted after the ordeal and he will need plenty of time to recover. I had to put him into a regenerative coma during the operation, and he might take a few weeks to wake up. After he does, though, he should be fine with a few days of rehabilitation."

"Thank you," he declared wholeheartedly.

Tsunade nodded, accepting his gratitude. She was exhausted as well, and she no longer doubted she had done the right thing. Jinchuuriki or not, Gaara was a young boy who did not deserved what had been done to him. She was glad Naruto had persuaded her to come here and help him, and she was glad to have saved his life.

She still had doubts, though, and would not rest easy until they gave her some answers. As much as she would have like to sleep first and worry about it later, it would not be wise. The elder Uchiha posed a dangerous threat to everybody inside and outside of Konoha, and while she put her worry aside while she tended her patient, there was no excuse now.

"You promised me answers," she reminded Naruto, holding his gaze.

He nodded. "The others should be here for that as well."

Tsunade accepted that, even though she would prefer not to share a room with the eldest Uchiha ever again.

The boy stood up, gave a last look at Gaara, and left the room.

How could a good kid like Naruto get mixed in with an S-rank psychopath? The question bothered her. She couldn't understand how the youngest Uchiha could be so placid in the presence of his brother either, or so ready to defend him. If it were her family the Uchiha had killed… Tsunade shook her head. There was no point in thinking that.

Maybe the kid was crazy. The Uchiha clan always walked close to the edge of madness. Or so her granduncle Tobirama used to say. Her grandfather disagreed. Maybe the boys were both under an illusion. She had heard that Uchiha Itachi was a master of genjutsu. The way Naruto had spoken to her, however - the way he had attacked and destroyed all her arguments… He didn't seem the type of person that allowed himself to be controlled, even if he was young.

One way or another, she would find out soon. And she would need all her strength if she intended to survive the meeting.

While she had eaten a few chakra pills during the operation to keep her energy up, she now counted on the Yin Seal on her forehead to replenish her chakra in case a fight broke out. The Uchiha would expect her to have exhausted her chakra reserves after such a long and complex operation, and the element of surprise might be enough to overpower him.

It was her best chance.

Naruto entered the room first, followed by the Uchiha brothers. The youngest one wore a blank expression on his face, keeping his thoughts and emotions carefully concealed. His gaze swept across the room for a moment, until it locked on to her. It was clear that he didn't like her. His glare was full of warning, yet he waited for his older brother to make the first move.

The eldest Uchiha nodded at her and greeted her, "Lady Tsunade." His tone was polite, and his features were mostly impassive as well, though they showed a hint of kindness.

He moved gracefully across the room and sat down in the floor, a few feet from her – close enough to maintain a conversation, and far enough to remain unthreatening. His brother followed him, and sat down next to him. His posture was stiff, not as gracious as that of his older brother. Naruto sat down as well, right across them, acting as a bridge between her and the Uchiha.

For a moment, all they did was to stare at each other – neither of them quite at ease.

Itachi was the one who broke the silence. "As I said before, you have my gratitude for saving Gaara. If you have questions, I will try to answer them. But first I must warn you, there will be answers you don't like – answers that were never meant to be found. You might regret ever asking. And yet, once you hear them... those answers can't be unheard."

That wasn't what she was expecting. Her eyes searched for Naruto unconsciously, who nodded at her. For some reason, she found the gesture reassuring. "Start talking," she commanded the Uchiha.

It the younger brother who spoke first. "Itachi didn't kill our clan," he stated bluntly. "Or he did," he rectified. "But he didn't want to. He was coerced and following orders."

That was even more unexpected. "Whose orders?" She questioned immediately, even though she wasn't sure that she believed him.

"Danzo's." Sasuke spited that word. "The elders'. The Hokage's. All of them." His feelings in the matter were clear.

Something twisted on her chest as a result of her accusation, but she ignored it. "You want me to believe the Hokage ordered your brother to butcher your entire family?" She asked, her eyebrow arched.

She wouldn't believe that. Sarutobi had been her sensei when she was just a gennin. She had trained her, along with Jiraiya and Orochimaru. She had known him for many years. He was a good man, and a good leader. If anything, he was too soft – as he had proved when he let Orochimaru escape alive. There was no way he had given such order.

"It wasn't the Hokage," Itachi intervened this time. "He was aware of the situation. I dare say he suspected and didn't interfere, but the order came from Danzo and the elders."

"The situation?" She repeated.

"The situation was very delicate. For years, since the Kyuubi's attack on the village, the Uchiha clan was ostracized and discriminated by Konoha. They were blamed for the attack, thought there was no proof that linked it to them, and they were kept under constant surveillance by ANBU," Itachi explained. "I know because I was ANBU as well, and I was part of the team assigned to the task."

Tsunade nodded. She was aware of that, at least. She didn't know the Uchiha had been ostracized, but she had heard more than a few voices blaming them for the attack – rather foolishly in her opinion, as they had won nothing with it and had suffered many casualties along the rest of the village.

One thing was true. The conversation was turning to be very different that the one Tsunade had predicted.

"As the years passed," Itachi continued relating, "the tensions between the village and my clan escalated. The Hokage was aware of my clan discontent and tried to negotiate with my father, but his attempts at diplomacy were constantly frustrated by Danzo. If the Hokage should take the blame for anything, it should be this," he said after a pause. "He was too weak to impose his will over his old friend. But seeing as the negotiations were getting then nowhere, my clan unhappiness grew, and they began to plan a revolt against the government of the village. My father asked me to spy on Konoha using my role as an ANBU. In reality, I became a double agent."

That was the last thing that Tsunade had expected to hear. Uchiha Itachi, now a psycho but a spy? Still, she had no reason to believe him. She was frustrated with herself because she was considering his words. But it was difficult not to, just looking at him.

"Even though my clan had legitimate reasons for the uprising, the logistics of it worked against them," Itachi explained, his voice even. "Even if they succeeded in making a peaceful transition the way my father intended, most of the clans would have never support an Uchiha. The Hyuga envied us too much, and the Nara, Yamanaka and Akimichi were too loyal to the Sarutobi clan."

All true.

"A conflict of such magnitude would have led Konoha to a Civil War. And considering the political instability at the time – especially Kumogakure's long-time ambition to defeat Konoha and steal its clans' secrets –, an internal conflict within the village could have easily escalated into a Ninja World Word between the Five Great Nations. I could not, in good conscience, be complicit on that."

For the first time, the Uchiha's features showed some emotion. His polite facade staggered, and Tsunade could glimpse some of the pain, the doubt and the guilt that he carried inside of him. It wasn't a lie. Those emotions were real. She could tell. If only for the great effort he was making to conceal them.

One thing was certain: he had managed to capture her attention. She was listening to him carefully now.

"My cousin Shisui and I made every effort to resolve the conflict peacefully," he recalled. "But like the Hokage, we failed." His voice didn't crack, then, but he did no longer hold her gaze. His eyes were now fixed in the distance. "Eventually, Danzo and the elders tired of waiting. He always saw the Uchiha as a dangerous threat to Konoha, and they agreed with him."

The uncomfortable feeling in his chest twisted some more. For the first time since he had begun speaking, Tsunade questioned herself if she really wanted to hear the end of his tale. She recalled the Uchiha's early warning, which she had dismissed all too hastily. But she couldn't asked him to stop.

As if reading his thoughts, he searched for his gaze – their eyes meeting again –. She knew what was coming. "The order was simple: to exterminate every living Uchiha." Just as she feared. "But in reward for my loyalty, the council offered me a choice: I could either join my family and die with them, or remain loyal to the village and stand aside as they were murdered."

She had known it was coming. Her chest still twisted at hearing it. She felt revolted. Had she consumed any food beyond chakra pills during the last forty eight hours, her stomach wouldn't have be able to keep it inside.

Her eyes darted to the two figures at the right and left of the Uchiha. His brother – Sasuke, she reminded herself, the least they deserved was to be called by their names – remained expressionless. His features were inscrutable. His face even more close off than before. Before, his black eyes had glared at her. In those occasions, anger had clouded his features. He had also shown worry and tenderness towards Naruto. Protectiveness towards his brother. Now, his face was a blank mask. She could read nothing from him.

Naruto was the complete opposite. His expression was open and his gaze full of sadness and empathy. She could tell, judging by his posture and the way he held his hands, that he yearned to offer some comfort to the brothers – both of them. But the way he looked at Sasuke… It was something else. It was gaze full of love. Love and fierce protectiveness. His earnest blue eyes – blue like the morning sky at dawn – shone brightly under the weight of such emotions.

Tsunade turned her eyes away. That gaze was too intimate, a private gesture meant only for the two of them, and she felt as an intruder just for witnessing the moment. Her eyes met Itachi's. She knew they shared the same thought.

"What happened after?" She inquired after a moment, although, in truth, she would rather remain ignorant. "How did your brother survive?"

"Sasuke was…" for the first time, Itachi's voice faltered. "He was an innocent," he said, but Tsunade suspected that it wasn't what he intended to say at first. He breathed deeply. "He was my reason for fighting. The person I care for most in the world." And finally, he spoke true. "Danzo knew of my love for him, so he proposed an exchange. He offered to spare his life, in exchange for me being the one to carry out the order, publicly accepting the blame for the death of my clan." After a pause, he added. "I accepted it."

This was it, then. The truth of the Uchiha's brothers. She had asked for it.

For a moment, her thoughts wandered to his own brother – forever young and forever smiling in her memory. What would had she done, she wondered, to keep him safe? If there was any chance at all to save his life, would any price had been too high? To see him grow old, fulfil all his dreams…

It was too painful just to consider it.

"How old were you?" She asked instead.

Curiously, the question seemed to make him uncomfortable. "I was old enough."

"He was thirteen," his brother interrupted, speaking for the first time since Itachi had begun his tale. Even a fool could see he disagreed with his brother statement. "He was fucking thirteen."

"Sasuke!" Itachi reprimanded him. He took no offense in his words, but seemed displeased at his choice of words.

Sasuke glared at him. Obviously, the boy didn't like to be mothered. No that Tsunade could blame him, now.

Thirteen. The number weighed heavily on mind. Thirteen. Just a boy, then, only a year older than his brother had been when she lost him. A boy of thirteen, carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders; forced to make a terrible choice between the live of his family and of thousands of strangers. A boy who wanted to prevent a war from breaking. A boy willing to damn himself to save his little brother. A boy betrayed by his village and abandoned to a live of horror.

How could they have allowed it? Sarutobi, the elders, the boy's father.

The fact that Danzo had played a crucial role in the massacre didn't surprise her. She had always been wary of him, since the days he began working as a subordinate for his granduncle. But she used to look up to her sensei. She considered him an honest, brave and just man. A worthy successor to his grandfather, a man who embodied the Will of Fire.

But those people, they were supposed to protect the defenceless – no matter what clan they belonged, or whose blood run through his veins –. And a thirteen year old forced into the role of a double agent, caught in a game of power between his family and the council – no matter how strong or skilled – was defenceless.

All the adults that had stood by and did nothing. How could they live with themselves?

Naruto's words from the day they met came to her mind.

He had begged her to came with him to heal his friend, repeating that she was the only one who could save him. And yet, she had refused him. She knew who he was – what he was –. And she wanted nothing to do with Konoha – even if the connexion was minimal –. Besides, Orochimaru had made her a good offer, and she was tempted to accept it.

Naruto had yelled at her then, so angry.

"I don't care what you say," he had told her. "The world might be shit, and you might be right that no person can change that. People die all the time. Friends lose each other. Families are broken apart. But that doesn't mean that every person don't matter. Gaara is my friend. He matters to me. He's been hated his whole life for something that was done to him, something he had no control over. And you have the power to save him. And if having that power you turn your back on him now, then you are just as bad as the people who hurt him. Just as bad as the people who took your brother from you."

He had been right, back then. As much as it hurt to have all those accusation thrown at her face, he had been right. She has seen the true of his words, the fire of his gaze. The same fire that had shone in the eyes his little brother once upon a time.

Did his words apply now too? If Tsunade had never walked away from Konoha? If she hadn't let herself be blinded by her pain and her losses to what was going on around her, could she have make a difference?

She had been one of those adults who should've shouldered the responsibility instead of forcing a thirteen-year-old boy to do it for them. She had both the strength and the connexions to make a difference. How many others had been, how many adults who were too lost on their own grief to see what was happening in front of their eyes, to notice the hell the boy had been enduring, the tragic choice that had been forced upon him at the end?

"I'm sorry," she said.

It was too little and too late, but her apology was sincere and it came from the heart.

None of them were expecting it.

Itachi's mouth hung open and, despite all his skills, his eyes failed to hide his surprise. Tsunade knew, in that moment, that she was the first one of Konoha adults who had apologized to him. And while it might not make a big difference or change anything at all, well, it was a beginning.

They could move on from there.

* * *

Well? What do you think of this chapter? I personally love it when Sasuke takes care of Itachi for a change, and I also enjoyed a lot writing Tsunade. I think that when judging Itachi many people forget that he was a kid at the time, not a legal adult by any means in our world, and it was the responsability of the adults to solve their problems... which they failed to do. Instead they used a traumatized teenager to fix their mess. Whether either side's actions were jusstified or not, I think all parties should take resonsability for this. And I think it's very in character for Tsunade to do so.

Of course, I'll love to hear your opinions.

The last part of the chapter wasn't edited yet. My beta became very busy these last few weeks, but I had promised some of you that the chapter would be ready soon, so I chose to upload it even thought the last few pages still need beting. I hope you enjoyed it anyway!


	17. Chapter 17

**CHAPTER 17**

Several days came and passed in the small merchant city without any major change in the lives of the five rogue ninjas. Gaara remained unconscious. Tsunade kept reassuring Naruto that it was actually a good thing. Gaara's body needed time to rest and recover after the ordeal he had suffered, and he would wake up when he was ready. Naruto believed her, for the most part.

As the first week went by, the four of them established a new routine that suited their needs well. Since Gaara couldn't be left alone, in case anything happened, they took turns to watch over him. Itachi was assigned to the morning shift and Tsunade to the afternoon's, while Sasuke took the evening shift, and Naruto the one after midnight.

Sasuke and Naruto used the mornings to catch up some sleep, and in the afternoons, after lunch, Itachi joined them, and the three of them resumed their training. Tsunade took over Itachi's shift and sat down next to her young patient – checking him over and transferring enough of her chakra to keep him alive and properly hydrated until he woke up and could ingest food and water the traditional way.

The rest of time… well, Tsunade did the only thing she could do, after listening to Itachi's tale. She drank. Every evening, once her shift was over, she walked down to what had become her favourite pub in the city and got wonderfully drunk. She usually came back to the hotel in the early hours of the morning and slept off her hangover until it was time to take over her shift again.

It wasn't ideal, but it fulfilled its purpose. It made life a bit more bearable.

As expected, Naruto disagreed with Tsunade's philosophy. His gaze followed her every time she stumbled across him while drunk, eyes full of disappointment. He had scolded her in more than one occasion too, but Tsunade gave him as good as she got. What else did the kid want from her anyway? She had done her part. She had saved his friend and learned things she had never wanted to know. She hadn't even bolted yet. What else could she do?

On those occasions, Sasuke's eyes were mocking. Sometimes he even seemed amused. But he no longer glared daggers at her, and he didn't judge her either. She would go as far as to say that she had earned a bit of his respect – and all it took was an apology to his older brother.

Itachi was nothing like the other two hooligans. He was always polite and well-mannered. He kept the rooms clean and tidy, and made sure that the dirty laundry was delivered to the hotel maids every night. He didn't swear, didn't speak with his mouth full, and didn't leave the dirty dishes lying around. He always addressed Tsunade respectfully as well, which was a nice change from the other two. They were always either too loud or too rude, and definitively too messy.

Tsunade had mistaken Itachi's politeness as a façade at first, but since then had come to realise that it was actually a consequence of the way he was raised.

Against all odds, Itachi and she had become close.

It didn't happen immediately. The first few days Tsunade had made a deliberate effort to avoid him. It was difficult to look at the older Uchiha and not to be reminded of the terrible things he had done, and worse yet, the terrible things that had been done to him. And every time they met, his gaze was always too knowing and too understanding, which in turn made her awkward and guilty – as she didn't think herself deserving of such understanding.

All that had changed one one Saturday night.

Usually quiet, Tsunade's favourite pub – located two streets away from the city main square and several minutes away from their hotel – had been crowded with tourist and natives alike. She had not wasted the chance to cheer herself up, and had spent the night drinking and gambling with more than a few of them.

By the time the pub closed its doors, the sun was up in the sky and she was so drunk that an employee had to help her to exit the pub. She had stumbled across the streets, then, too drunk to think straight or to make her way back to the hotel.

Tsunade had even called aloud for Shizune a few times – oblivious to the fact that her assistant had not travelled here with her, and thus, unlike all the previous occasions, she couldn't help her this time. Tsunade didn't know what had alerted Itachi of her absence or how he had found her, but, appearing from nowhere, he had helped her rise to her feet and had walked her back to the hotel without as much as a word of complaint or a judgemental look.

Itachi never again mentioned the incident, and the following morning his behaviour towards her remained as respectful and polite as before. From that moment forward, Tsunade decided that she actually preferred his company to that of the two brats'.

A peculiar sort of friendship had been growing ever since.

* * *

Gaara didn't wake up until the fourth week.

Tsunade was with him when he did, and immediately sent one of her slugs to alert the three boys – who were training in the woods nearby. Gaara's return to consciousness took several minutes. First, his body stirred, and then, his fingers clenched. His heart rate accelerated. Slowly, his breathing quickened. His muscles tensed. He blinked several times.

Then, quick as a flash, he tried to stand… and failed miserably. He tried again, and Tsunade had to restrained him before he hurt himself, holding him still against the mattress.

Gaara began to hyperventilate. He was going into a panic attack.

"It's okay." Tsuande's voice was nurturing as she tried to calm him down. "Don't worry now. You are safe. Naruto brought me here to heal you."

At the word Naruto, he ceased in his struggles. "Naruto?" he repeated.

Tsunade nodded at him, encouraging. The boy's light blue eyes flicked across the room. "Naruto," he said again. His voice sounded desperate. "I have to warn him. I have to—"

"Sssh," Tsunade soothed. In his condition, increased blood pressure could have adverse effects on his recovery. Stress was dangerous. His body needed time to heal properly and regain its strength. "Relax. Naruto will be here soon, I promise."

As luck would have it, Naruto chose that same moment to enter the room by the window. He ran straight to his friend, kneeling at his side. "Gaara!"

Sasuke and Itachi followed after him, approaching them but stopping a few feet away – not wanting to overwhelm the boy. Gaara didn't even notice their presence. His gaze was fixed in Naruto, his face distorted by anxiety.

"Naruto, he wants to kill you," he cried, his words fuelled by fear and urgency. "He sent his men after you!"

"What?" Naruto's eyes widened. That was the last thing he was expecting. "Who?" Then he shook his head. "Wait, it doesn't matter now. We are safe here, I promise. You need to focus on regaining your strength."

If anything, his words had the opposite effect of what he intended. Gaara's breathing became even more erratic, and he looked very afraid. "You need to listen," he insisted again. "He is coming for you. He is coming for your friend as well." He paused, recalling the details. "He said… an Uchiha?"

Immediately, Naruto's and Itachi's gaze flickered to Sasuke. Sasuke frowned at them in response. Tsunade kept her senses focused on her patient.

"Sasuke?" Naruto questioned, turning his eyes back at Gaara. "Gaara, who is coming after Sasuke?"

"It's… the Hokage."

"The Hokage?" he repeated, incredulous.

No, he couldn't believe that. There was no way the Hokage had ordered Sasuke's death and his. The old man was guilty of some serious mistakes, no doubt, but Naruto couldn't believe he'd go as far as to order their deaths. The deaths of two children.

His face wasn't the only one to show incredulity. It was obvious that Tsunade didn't believe it either.

"The name!" Sasuke demanded suddenly. "Do you know the Hokage's name?"

For the first time, Gaara's gaze drifted to him. He furrowed his face, wrinkles dotting his forehead. "I don't…" He made an effort to recall it, but was assaulted by a violent cough. Tsuande was on him in a second, her arms holding his back straight as he tried to regain his breath.

"He needs to rest," she said to them. "He is about to pass out again."

Naruto nodded, accepting her wisdom and willing to drop the subject for now. But Sasuke kept staring at the redhead, his eyes demanding an answer. After a few moments, Gaara's lips moved again.

"There was a man with him...He… He called him Danzo."

Gaara passed out a few seconds after that.

A cold silence filled the room.

A long, dreadful silence.

Sasuke was the one who broke it.

"Shit!" he swore angrily. "Fucking shit!" He turned his back at them, walked to the nearest window, and threw his fist against a wall. "I should've known!"

He was so angry at himself. Orochimaru had given him a big fucking clue. How could he be so stupid to miss it?

Naruto looked at him in confusion. "Sasuke, what?"

"Orochimaru," he said.

Of course. It was obvious now.

Sasuke laughed then, but it was far from cheerful.

"Sasuke," Itachi said. He couldn't stand the sight of his little brother laughing that way. The resemblance to madness was too close.

"I made a deal with him," Sasuke explained, a bit calmer now, answering both the questions they had yet to ask. "I told him to leave Konoha alone or I'd kill him. He told me, he fucking told me that Konoha wanted me dead. He said the Hokage had promised him my eyes and my body in exchange of publically taking the blame for my death."

"But the Hokage wouldn't do that," Naruto repeated again, so sure of his words.

Sasuke's eyes flicked from him to the other two people in the room. Itachi's face had become a blank mask – it gave nothing away. But Tsunade—. Her eyes were wide. Looking at her face, Sasuke knew that she had figured it out.

He focused his gaze in Naruto again.

"Think," he instructed him. "Why was Orochimaru in Vesta?"

The answer came quickly.

"Because he needed Tsunade's help to fix her arms."

"And how did he screw up his arms?"

"Because he fought—" Naruto paused just a second, realization written across his face. "The Hokage," he concluded gravely.

It was blatantly obvious now. The death of the Third had been the first turn of a chain of events that had altered their lives forever. Hiruzen had died locking away Orochimaru's arms. The death of the Hokage had prompted Jiraiya and Naruto's journey in search of Tsunade and Itachi's fateful return to Konoha.

But they both had been so distracted these last few weeks – Naruto worrying about Gaara and Sasuke refusing to acknowledge the past – that they had missed it.

Sasuke spoke again. "And after the Hokage died, they needed someone to replace him…"

"But Jiraiya would never agree," Naruto finished for him. "And Tsunade…"

He could not say it aloud, not while she was still in the room. But the only reason Tsunade didn't become Hokage was that, this time, Naruto hadn't gone searching for her with Jiraiya – nor had he tried to persuade her to accept such responsibility. It seemed that, without him, his godfather hadn't even tried to find her.

"She was here, helping us," he said instead.

He and Sasuke looked at her, their eyes prying with a silent question, but she shook her head in denial. "No one knew where I was," she countered. "And it wouldn't have mattered anyway. I swore I wouldn't put a foot back in Konoha, and I have no intention of breaking that oath. Now more than ever," she vowed, sure of herself.

"But there had to have been someone else!" Naruto cried, not caring if he sounded childish. "Anyone's better than Danzo."

"Not necessarily," Itachi answered, voice neutral. "He had a lot of standing as part of the council, and worked closely with the Hokage for years. Several people looked up to him, and many more considered him a crucial asset for the preservation of the village."

Something about Itachi had changed. Naruto couldn't point the exact moment when it had happened, but it had. His face wore the same blank expression from before – one that didn't give any of his thoughts or emotions away. His features remained poised, cool as stone, but there was a fire burning underneath his skin. A fire that, simply by staring at him, one could not Naruto sensed it in his guts.

Naruto was reminded of why the simple mention of Itachi's name put fear on most ninjas' hearts. If Sasuke's anger burnt like fire – quick, feral and untamed, Itachi's anger resembled ice – patient, disciplined and deceptively dangerous. Although altogether different, it wasn't any less deadly than his brother's.

Oblivious to Naruto's thoughts, Sasuke stated as a matter of fact, "I'm going to kill him."

Three pairs of eyes turned to look at him.

"You can't."

It wasn't Itachi who spoke those two words, nor was it Naruto.

It was Tsunade.

She commanded their attention now. "I'm not saying he doesn't deserve it," she clarified quickly. "But like it or not, he has been named Hokage now. If you attack him, everyone in the village will rise up in arms to defend him. And if you manage to kill him, every Konoha Shinobi will be sworn to kill you in revenge."

Sasuke didn't seemed fazed by this possibility.

"They can try," he answered her darkly; an obscure expression upon his features.

Tsunade arched her eyebrows at him, unimpressed. "Do you wish to declare war on Fire Country? Because any attempt against the Hokage's life will be taken as such."

"That's not what we want," Itachi spoke for his brother.

"But he can't be allowed to remain Hokage." Naruto interjected .

The oldest Uchiha agreed with him. "No, he can't," he reaffirmed, coldly.

To Naruto, that left only one alternative. "We have to find another way to get rid of him, then. If we let people know what he is, and the things he's done, they won't let him stay as the Kage."

Itachi's gaze turned to Tsunade – acknowledging that she was the one most experienced of the group in political matters. "Is it possible?"

She nodded. "In theory, yes. In practice, it will be difficult," she warned them. "The Kage is an elected official. In Konoha, to be elected Hokage one needs the vote of the majority of the clans, and then that nomination has to be ratified by the Feudal Lord of the country. But the clans alone cannot appoint anyone as Hokage. Likewise, the clans alone don't have the authority to dismiss anyone from that post. Not lawfully, at least."

At that, she looked at the two Uchiha pointedly. Their clan had been dissatisfied with the leadership of the village for years, offended by the treatment they had been subjected to, but there had be no legal way for them to challenge it. The only way to show their displeasure had been through a military coup.

"The Feudal Lord alone possesses the authority to do so," she continued explaining. "However, they are very careful not to interfere in the inner rulings of a Hidden Village. To meddle in ninjas' affairs is dangerous. Openly going against the will of the majority of the clans by invalidating their decision… That's practically suicide."

"What do you think it's our best chance, then?" Itachi asked her, after listening to her very carefully.

"What you need is proof," Tsunade answered him honestly. "If you present solid proof of Danzo's wrongdoings to the Feudal Lord, he'll pass it along to the clans and, after earning support, he will remove him from office."

"But Itachi the only one who knows what happened," Naruto protested. "The Third is dead, and the elders will lie to save their own asses."

"He admitted it, though," recalled Sasuke. "Sarutobi. I told him before we left Konoha that if he sent anyone after us I would tell the world what they had ordered Itachi to do, and he didn't deny it."

He and Naruto looked at Tsunade, their gazes questioning. She shook her head. "You're both too young. They won't take two kids seriously. Worse yet, you are a jinchūriki and you are Itachi's brother. They are much more likely to imprison you than listen to anything you have to say."

Naruto lowered his gaze. He had expected a similar answer, but it was still upsetting to be reminded of how people saw him – not as a person or even as a boy, but as a useful tool, as a monster.

"What about Orochimaru?" Sasuke enquired after a short pause. "I'm pretty sure he's had more than a few dealings with Danzo. And he would give us proof, if I asked him."

If Tsunade had doubts about the extent of the control he held over her old teammate, she hid it well. "That won't help you. He is no longer just a criminal. He is the one who murdered the Hokage a few weeks ago. Right now, his word is worth less than Itachi's."

Sasuke accepted this statement easily, although he didn't bother to conceal the anger from his features. That basically left them out of choices.

"Wait a minute!" Naruto exclaimed suddenly. "What about Nagato?"

Tsunade hadn't heard that name before. "Who?"

"He is the leader of Amegakure," he told her. "He is the leader of Akatsuki too. He is one of the strongest ninja alive, and hates Konoha because Danzo helped to orchestrate the assassination of his best friend. But he is not a bad person."

Tsunade stared at him, suspicion growing in her eyes.

"How can you know all that?" She questioned him, vocalizing for the first time the doubts that had been nagging at her since she met him. "You are barely thirteen…" But he didn't act his age. Neither did Sasuke, for that matter – although his sullenness and short-temper helped him to hide this fact better.

"I have been working undercover in the Akatsuki for years," Itachi interrupted them, covering for the blonde. "I told my brother and Naruto everything I found out about them, after they confronted me."

"Not to mention all the research Naruto and I did before leaving Konoha," Sasuke supported his brother's tale, lying as naturally as him. "We both mistrusted the stories that we had been told – about my brother and about Naruto himself. So we did a lot of digging to find out the truth by ourselves."

"And you got away with it?" she inquired arching both her eyebrows, athough her doubts had been considerably mollified.

"Well," Sasuke answered with a smirk, "this idiot wasn't named Konoha's number one prankster and troublemaker for nothing."

"Oh, you are one to talk, bastard." Naruto shot back at him. However, his words lacked any real heat and, in fact, he was smiling.

Tsunade felt her body relax. They might often not act as normal kids should, that was true, but no one could deny that their relationship was endearing. And if she was honest with herself, they wouldn't be the first nor the last ninja kids she had met that were a bit screwed on the head - that's what happened when a society insisted on training child-killers.

She could always count on Itachi, anyway – he was the one with most common sense of the group by far, which was saying something.

"And you think this Nagato will agree to you help you?" She inquired, taking the conversation back on topic.

"Yeah!" Naruto assured her. "He is a really great guy at heart. Jiraiya was his sensei, you know? He is hurt and has a lot of misguided ideas, but I know I can make him see my way. And if Danzo played a major role in the events that led Amegakure to a Civil War – including Yahiko's murder – there has to be some proof left of it."

Tsunade considered this for a moment. "Konoha and Amegakure had never been allies, so any operation that Danzo carried out with Hanzo – Amegakure former leader – could not have been sanctioned. Rain Country is not one of the five great nations, but still carries enough weight that they won't dismiss his leader's accusation against the Hokage without a formal investigation."

"And if they start to investigate, there is no way they won't find some of the shit Danzo's been hiding for years." Naruto concluded with enthusiasm.

Although considerably less expressive than the blonde, Itachi seemed pleased with this solution as well. Sasuke didn't speak against it – which meant he didn't oppose it.

"We need to move swiftly," the older Uciha warned them . "For this plan to succeed, we need to make our move before Danzo has time to fully establish himself as the new Hokage."

Tsunade agreed with him. "Itachi's right. It will take him several months to gain full control over the clans. You must present your case to the Feudal Lord before it happens."

Naruto and Sasuke both nodded. "When do you think Gaara will be able to leave?" Naruto asked her.

She shrugged. "It's impossible to know with certainty. I'd say more than two weeks and less than four."

"That's too long." Sasuke complained loudly.

He was right in that assessment, but Naruto glared at him anyway. "I'm not leaving him alone. He is my friend. And if Danzo's men find him…" He didn't want to end that sentence. Even thinking about it enraged him.

"You won't have to," Tsuande spoke.

Immediately, Naruto turned his head to meet her gaze. He was surprise at the familiar expression he saw on her face, a face that was now full of determination.

"I will look after him," she said, without giving him time to argue about it. "You said it yourself, kid. If someone has the power to right a wrong, and yet chooses to do nothing, that person is just as guilty as the ones who carried out the deed in the first place. So, this is me, doing something. I promise I'll watch over Gaara and I won't let anything happen to him," she vowed, her voice softer now. "And once he is well enough to travel, we'll both meet you in Amegakure."

If it had been anyone else making that vow, with the exception perhaps of Sasuke and Itachi, Naruto would have dismissed it. But he couldn't do that to her. This was the woman who had chosen to believe in him even when she barely knew him. The one person whose faith in him had never wavered – not even when he began to grow apart from everybody's expectations.

She had always protected him without asking for anything in return.

If Tsunade said that she would keep Gaara safe, he believed her.

"Okay," he agreed. "I trust you."

His faith in her seemed to take her by surprise, and perhaps she had expected him to put more of a fight – judging by the way her eyes widened at his words – but then she nodded, smiling at him. "I won't let you down."

* * *

From that moment forward, everything happened pretty quickly.

They devised a plan to break into Amegakure, and the strategy they would follow once inside Rain Country. Then, Naruto, Sasuke and Itachi left Tsunade and went to pack up their bags. Seeing as it was already quite late, they decided it would be more practical to spend the night in the hotel and leave early in the morning.

The four of them had a quiet dinner – Gaara still unconscious . Afterwards, Naruto excused himself for a few minutes to bid farewell to Hikari, the receptionist girl , who, during the last few months, had grown to become a friend.

After he came back, he offered to take over the night shift from Tsunade.

Despite the fact that he needed to replenish energy for the journey, the blonde could tell that sleep wouldn't come easily tonight, and he wanted to stay with Gaara anyway. Secretly he hoped his friend would wake up again, giving him a chance to say goodbye before leaving. If he didn't, perhaps Naruto could leave a clone behind to explain him in person why they had to leave in such a hurry, and to make sure Gaara knew that he'd be welcome in Amekagure when he joined them.

Sasuke volunteered to stay with him for a while.

Naruto appreciated the company. His mood had turned quite melancholic in the last few hours, and he found his best friend's presence comforting. They sat in silence for several minutes, both of them watching the night sky through the window. The moon was waxing. The wind could be heard from the outside. They had arrived to this universe at at the beginning of spring, and soon, autumn would be at its fullest.

Unexpectedly, Sasuke was the one who broke the silence.

He looked at Naruto with a serious expression. "You know she'll look after him, right?"

"Yeah." The blonde didn't doubt it.

"Then? What is it?"

Sometimes, it still amazed Naruto how perceptive Sasuke could be. He didn't seem like the type – he was too harsh and too disregarding of most social norms for anyone to identifying him as an emphatic person, less of all himself – but he always had the ability to see right through him, even when most people could not.

Naruto shook his head. "It's nothing. Just stupid a thought."

Sasuke didn't disagree. "Well, that's hardly surprising," he joked.

Naruto nudged him in the ribs, using perhaps more strength than the situation called for. "Shut up, you bastard." Sasuke accepted the hit with grace, and his lips curled into a complacent smile as he turned his face to look at the blonde.

"Whatever you say, idiot." He waited a few seconds to go by, before asking again. "So?"

"It's just—" How could he put into words what he was feeling? "I think I'm gonna to miss this place, that's all."

"Oh. Me too," Sasuke acknowledged after a pause.

Naruto stared at him, the weight of his admission lifting his mood a bit. "Yeah?"

"We've had a good time, haven't we?"

The blonde nodded, a small smile gracing his lips – happy that he wasn't the only one to feel that way. They had shared a flat for two years after the war, so they had some experience living together. And yet, those last four months since they left Konoha had turned into a completely new experience.

Living among strangers – away from everybody's expectations – had been freeing in way Naruto hadn't expected or experienced before. All alone and away from others, they had been free to be themselves without any pretence. As consequence, the memories they had created were embroiled by a new sort of intimacy.

Naruto had never felt closer to the real Sasuke. His friend had been open with him in ways that he would never have dared to hope for before. And even after Itachi joined them, that intimacy between them hadn't faded. It had merely grown to envelop him as well.

Just for that, Naruto would always remember this place.

"We should come back one day, once we had taken down Danzo and sorted out the Akatsuki. Like a holiday," Sasuke suggested after a while, his voice soft.

"Don't forget we need to take care of Obito and Zetsu as well," the blonde reminded him, more serious.

"What? Too much for you?"

Naruto loved that friendly teasing. "I'm not worried. I can take anyone if I have you with me." That had been, perhaps, more than he meant to say. To diffuse the mood, he changed the topic. "Hey, weren't we supposed to go to a snowy place for the next holiday?"

"You did say you'd put some ice inside Itachi's pants," Sasuke remembered it as well.

They both laughed softly at that. A few seconds passed in comfortable silence. The proximity between their bodies was such that their shoulders were touching. "I guess it doesn't really matter," the Uchiha declared after a while. "We can go wherever you want to go."

Surprised by this statement, Naruto turned his face to meet his gaze. Sasuke was already staring into his face. His gaze captured him just as his lips curled into a precious smile. His black eyes were shining, and just this once, Sasuke didn't try to hide the multitude of emotions that shone in his pupils.

Naruto's chest swelled with love. By looking into those eyes he knew with certainty, without shadow of doubt, that his best friend was right. It didn't really matter where they went next – no as long as they were together –.

* * *

 _A lot of small things happened in this chapter, and I think it moved the story foward in an unexpected way. I enjoyed a lot writing the growing friendship between Tsunade and Itachi, and of course, the last scene with Naruto and Sasuke melted my heart._

 _I think we are taking a big step foward here. Our characters not only leave town, but a whole chapters of their lives behind. We just finished the first part of the story , and next chapter will introduce us to the second part. Up until this point, the main subjet was finding Itachi and then establishing a confortable relationship between our main three characters._

 _Now the plot is going two ways: on one the hand our characters are going to be playing "ninja politics", and on the other hand Naruto and Sasuke's relationship is going to involve from friendship to romance. I can't wait to write that part, really!I hope you all have enjoyed the journey that has brought us here._

 _When I started to write this fanfic I had a clear idea in my mind, and I knew where the story was going. That hasn't changed, but it has grown expansively. And I know I would have stopped writing a long time ago if not for the amazing support you all have showed me. So thank you, from the bottom of my heart.I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and please, let me know what your thoughts are in the comments._

 _PS: If you are living London and you enjoy fanfiction, check this out: www. meetup Friends-City/events/245289128/_

 _It'd be so lovely meeting some of you in person! ;-)_


	18. Chapter 18

_Guys, chapter 19 is here! I can't believe it. Thank you again for all your invaluable support in the last chapter, and I hope you'll stay with me as the story moves forward._

 _For this chapter, I need to thank my betas Kiesyke and Yfere for all the help they gave me. They were amazing._

 _Yfere, I'll say it once again, I really feel that your feedback turned this chapter (and the next) from "good" to "outstanding". I don't know how to thank you for all your advise, but I hope you know how much I appreciate it._

* * *

 **Chapter 18**

The journey from Earth Country to the village hidden in the Rain wasn't a long one. It took the three ninjas five days to reach the border. They ran at a steady pace, but took care to stop twice a day to eat and take a long break at night to sleep. Despite the urgency that spurred their actions, it was dangerous to arrive at the Village Hidden in the Rain exhausted.

Once they reached the border, they stopped to eat one last meal before infiltrating the country. Sitting down on the ground, Itachi retrieved an old sheet of paper and a pen from the pouch strapped to his back, then proceeded to draw a quick map of the Rain Country, detailing its geography and the location of the main cities to Naruto and Sasuke.

"The hidden Rain is sheltered from outsiders with several chakra barriers and traps, which are distributed evenly all along the country's border," he told them. "Only a very skilled seal master would be able to breach those defences. However, this ring—" his gaze fell over the ring he was wearing on his right hand, "–should allow us to pass through these barriers effortlessly."

"Is that the one that all the Akatsuki members wear?" Naruto asked him, catching on quickly.

Itachi nodded. "Pain wanted us to have a place to retreat to in case something went wrong on one of our missions, so he made those rings to nullify the chakra that he had poured into the barriers and traps. Neither Kisame nor I ever had to use them, but it'll make things easier now."

"What about the nail polish?" Naruto asked again. "Does it have any cool ability as well?" Sasuke rolled his eyes at the question, but after a second, he too looked at his brother for an answer.

The eldest Uchiha chuckled a little. He had come to appreciate Naruto's gift to diffuse the tension even in the most serious situations. "I'm afraid the nail polish's only purpose is purely for aesthetic," he said. "Although the polish is imbued with chakra, so it'll take years to wear off."

"Oh." Naruto looked a little disappointed.

Sasuke used the opportunity to bring the conversation back to the original subject. "So, your ring will let us pass through the barriers."

"Yes," Itachi said. "However, Pain never intended for the Akatsuki to come close to the Capital. Unlike the rest of the country, Amegakure is very densely populated – and he didn't trust any of us not to harm its citizens. Which means that once we reach its surroundings, he'll be made aware of our presence, and he'll send one or more of his bodies after us."

"And that's when we fight him off," Sasuke finished for him. "While Naruto goes on to find Nagato. Won't he try to go after him, instead?"

"It's very unlikely," Itachi stated. "As of now, Pain doesn't have any information about you or Naruto's abilities. He'll identify him as a jinchuriki, no doubt, but he'll choose to deal with the biggest threat first – and that's me. He will assume that once I'm dead, there'll be no one to stop him from getting to you."

"He is in for a surprise, then," Sasuke gloated, his eyes glowing with anticipation. As much fun as it was to train with Naruto and his brother, he had missed the chance of having a real fight. Especially after the news that Gaara had broken to them.

Naruto rolled his eyes at Sasuke's enthusiasm and used his sleeve to dry off a few drops of rain trailing down his forehead. It had been raining since they had entered the country, but the rain seemed to intensify as they neared the capital.

"Don't let this bastard go too hard on Nagato, okay?" he asked of Itachi, ignoring the way Sasuke glared at him.

Itachi merely smiled.

* * *

Everything went according to plan. Itachi's ring allowed them to cross the border and walk into the country without any problems. Four hours later, the capital's tall buildings became visible in the skyline. They were only a couple miles away from Amegakure's outskirts when they sensed two highly trained ninja approaching.

Naruto recognized them immediately. One of them was Yahiko's body – the one Nagato disguised as Pain. The other one was the Preta Path, the one with the ability to absorb chakra from others. He was mildly surprised Nagato hadn't send all seven bodies to greet them, but those two were a logical choice if he was planning to fight the Uchiha.

Quickly, Naruto warned the other two of his discovery. Itachi nodded at him. He was already aware. "Leave them to us," he said. "You have your own mission today."

Sasuke agreed with his brother. He was smiling broadly and seemed more than ready for a fight. "I'd wish you good luck if I thought you'd need it," he teased Naruto instead of saying goodbye.

"Good luck to you, then, bastard," the blond teased him back.

It made him feel good – reinforcing the idea that he didn't need to worry about Sasuke. While Nagato was a formidable enemy, one who had almost gotten the best of him the first time they faced each other in Konoha, since that encounter Naruto and Sasuke had improved their skills exponentially – to the point that they had faced an evil god and survived to tell the tale.

Even if their current bodies were weaker than they had been back then, both in chakra reserves and strength, Sasuke was not fighting alone – he had Itachi with him. Naruto wouldn't forget how quickly the raven had spotted each and every one of the Rinnegan's weaknesses – that time when Naruto and him had fought Nagato together – and had used one of them to defeat him.

Naruto could trust Itachi to look after Sasuke.

He needed to focus on the task at hand.

Aware that he had to move fast, not giving time for any of the Pains to find him, Naruto asked Kurama for help. In the last weeks of training, while Gaara rested still unconscious, he had managed to master the Kurama Mode as opposed to the Nine-Tails Chakra Mode that he had been using since arriving to this universe. Kurama Mode required a higher endurance and higher chakra reserves, as well as a major control over one's chakra, and originally, it had exhausted his young body in a matter of seconds.

Now, however, seven months later, he had grown strong enough to handle it. He was confident that in a year or so he'd be able to use The Six Paths Sage Mode as well.

Making use of the speed that the Kurama Mode provided him with, it was easy for Naruto to infiltrate the capital without being detected by any of the Pain bodies that stood guard over the city. It was equally simple to locate the chakra threads that connected the seven Pains with Nagato. They all led towards the heart of the capital.

Naruto followed them quickly, and he ended up facing a four-story mansion.

The manor was both imposing and dignified. It was surrounded by a large park of trees and grass. On the left side of the park flowed a small stream that ended up in a beautiful lake where a handful of swans were swimming. The surrounding buildings towered over the mansion by at least thirty floors - hiding it from view.

Following Nagato's chakra, Naurto broke into the mansion through a window. He walked down the deserted corridors until he reached the ground floor. Finally, he came to a stop in front of a wooden door. He could feel Nagato and Konan's chakra on the other side.

Breathing deeply, Naruto put his hand on the doorknob and opened it. He walked inside. Immediately, two pair of eyes turned to look at him.

The scene wasn't as Naruto had imagined it, exactly. The room was obviously an office. It had two big windows, the one on the opposite wall larger than the one on the side. The walls were completely covered by bookshelves. There was a thick wooden table that occupied half of the space in the room filled with book and papers, and three elegant chairs – one behind the table, a second one in front of it, and the third next to the smaller window.

The chair behind the table and the one next to the window were occupied, but it was Konan who sat behind the desk – a pen in her hand, she seemed completely engrossed in the papers that lay before her – and Nagato was the one who was watching the rain fall through the window.

They both reacted at the same time, though. Konan stood, eyes full of shock and mistrust, dropped the pen, and began to form seals – getting ready to strike. Nagato merely stared at him. The surprise from seeing him soon gave way to... indifference? Or was it triumph? Half of his face was hidden by his hair, which made it difficult to read his features.

"Kyuubi no jinchuuriki," Nagato said, recognizing him. "Stay back, Konan," he quickly instructed the girl, before his gaze fell back on Naruto. "He came willingly to us, there is no need to incapacitate him. Tell me, jinchuuriki, was it Itachi Uchiha that brought you here? Has he not betrayed the Akatsuki then, as he once betrayed his village?"

"Itachi never betrayed Konoha. Deserving or not, he was always loyal to the village," Naruto replied without a pause. "Now he is loyal to Sasuke,"

His words seemed to displease Nagato. "Loyal to a village of murderers," he spat, but regained control over his features almost immediately. "Why have you come, then?" he asked Naruto. "Are you here to kill me? To extract vengeance upon me for the plans I have designed for you and others like you?"

"I'm not here to kill anyone, and neither are my friends," the blonde responded firmly. Still standing in the doorway, he took a few steps forward into the room. He walked slowly and took great care to keep his body as non threatening as possible. He stopped a few feet from Nagato and looked at him straight in the eyes, choosing to overlook Konan for the moment. "I'm here to ask for your help."

"My help?" the Rinnegan wielder repeated. "What on Earth made you think I would help you?"

"I guess because we both want the same thing. We want to bring justice to the world and end the eternal cycle of hatred," Naruto answered, using Nagato's old words against him. Then he added in a softer voice. "And because we are family."

Nagato took offense in this declaration. He narrowed his eyes and his expression twisted derisively. Konan, however, who had remained suspicious of him from the beginning, showed another emotion: curiosity.

"I have no family," Nagato stated angrily, ignoring the first part of Naruto's answer. "Konoha shinobi made sure of it when they murdered my mother and father. I was just a boy when they taught me for the first time the meaning of pain, and I haven't forgotten it since."

Unlike the first time they met, Naruto was already aware of Nagato's tragic past. This foreknowledge helped him to address the subject carefully.

"I lost my parents when I was a baby as well," he told them. "Although perhaps I was luckier than you: it's difficult to miss those you don't remember." An echo of melancholy could be heard in his voice as he said this. "But since the day I was born, I was hated. I had no one to care for me or to look after me. People in Konoha cursed my name and looked down on me. And nobody cared how much it all hurt. So, believe me," he concluded, meeting Nagato's gaze straight on. "I'm no stranger to pain."

Nagato narrowed his eyes, judging the truth behind his words. The blond was not lying, and his story made sense, with him being a jinchuuriki. And those blue eyes – it was impossible to deny that this boy had known pain and loss in his life, just by looking at them. However…

"That doesn't make us family," he protested almost childishly.

Naruto rolled his eyes, well aware that the other was being purposely difficult. "Well, _obviously_. We are related through my mom. I never knew who she was, but before she died, she left a part of her chakra hidden inside me," he explained quickly. "I finally met her when I broke the seal that kept Kurama a prisoner, and she told me her name. She was Kushina, of the Uzumaki clan, just like your mom. So I suppose that make us cousins," he said with a smile. "You have the same hair as her, you know?" he added as an afterthought.

The redhead's eyes widened for a fraction of a second, and it seemed that he had been left speechless.

"Nagato, is this true?" Konan questioned him from the table.

Her voice brought him back to reality. Yes, it was probably true. Neither his father nor his mother had used a surname before their names, as it might have brought unwanted attention to their family. But sometimes, at bedtime, his mother used to tell him stories about her old village before it was destroyed, and the numerous family members she had there – all of them smiling, and full of energy, and with hair red as blood.

She used to tell him how much they would've loved him – his cousins, aunts and uncles – had they had a chance to meet him. How happy he would have been growing up alongside them.

Those memories belonged to a different life.

"It matters not," he said to her. "Our goal does not change."

"We are also related through your sensei," Naruto told them, ignoring this statement. "The man who taught you is also my godfather."

"Jiraiya-sensei?" Konan asked him, her voice full of surprise.

Naruto nodded.

Somehow, this revelation seemed to hit Nagato even harder than before. For the first time in the conversation, he seemed to be… at a loss. "Jiraiya-sensei… taught you?"

"Yes," Naruto said. "I know you've read his book," he said to his cousin. "And that you have talked to him. Our sensei sees all the hate in the world, all the pain and suffering, and believes that a saviour will come to break the chain of hatred and bring peace and true understanding to the people."

"And that's what I intend to do," Nagato estated immediately, regaining his confidence. "The people of this world are too selfish and greedy to live in peace and harmony with each other. They think only of themselves and their friends and villages – but they care not for those who are strangers. But I will teach them the true meaning of pain. I will see them suffer and cry in desperation. And once they have suffered enough, once they had experienced enough pain, they'll finally understand the importance of selflessness, and for a while, war and crimes will disappear and humanity will be at peace."

It wasn't a terrible plan. Oh, it _was_ terrible, but it could work. Chances were, it would work. That didn't make it right, though, and Naruto needed Nagato to see that.

"I had a friend that thought like you for a while," he said. "He used hate as a tool instead of pain, but his plan was similar to yours." It wasn't easy, recalling one of the worst days of his life; but at least, Nagato and Konan seemed to be listening to him – really listening. Wasn't that half the victory already? "He wanted to take away the illusion of control from everyone and rule over them as a dictator – knowing it would cause them to hate him. He thought that, in time, they would unite in their hatred towards him, and so, one day, the people would stand together to kill him and his death would bring peace to the world."

Nagato seemed entranced by this story. "Did he think that hate was a more powerful motivator than pain?" he wondered aloud.

The blond nodded, but he was frowning. "He was wrong," he stated firmly. "Just as you are wrong. Just as Jiraiya was wrong as well. I needed some help to see that, but I finally understand it now."

Nagato narrowed his eyes at him, displeased by his second statement. But he, like Konan, was surprised by his last admission. "You think sensei was wrong?"

"He thought you might be the chosen one, you know, once upon a time," Naruto told his cousin, instead of answering his question straight away. "He thought so too of my father. He will probably think that about me one day. But I believe—" he paused for a moment, wanting to give emphasis to his voice. "I believe that it's a very selfish and cowardly way of thinking."

It was obvious by the way the two friends stared at him in shock, that neither of them was expecting such a declaration. After all, they respected Jiraiya very much – not only because he had saved their lives, but because it had been his belief in a peaceful world that had sharpened theirs.

Naruto wasn't finished yet.

He still had to share with them the most important lesson of all he had learned. "No matter how strong or how powerful," he told them, "a person alone cannot change the world."

It had taken him several years of serious misgivings and the counsel of friends wiser than he to finally understand that. And there were times when he still struggled with that knowledge. But he knew in his heart that he was right. "The peace that is forced upon the people is worth nothing. It's called slavery. The only way to bring real peace to the world is for all of us, every one of us who cares, to work together to achieve that goal."

"No one would ever do that," Nagato immediately disagreed. "Humans are too selfish and stupid."

"Most of them, yeah," the blond acknowledged, but his cheerful demeanour and strong resolve wasn't diminished by admitting the truth. "But not all. There are good-hearted, rightful people who see the cruelness of this world and do their best to improve it – even just a little. People like our sensei. And there are lots of people who aren't bad, people who are willing to do the right thing – even if they need a little push in the right direction to get there."

For once, his cousin didn't dismiss him straight away. He actually looked thoughtful, as if he were giving his words serious consideration.

"He is right."

The two males, who up to that moment had kept their gazes on each other, turned to look at Konan. She met their gazes without cowering, but her expression softened slightly after noticing the shock and confusion in her friend's features. "You know I will always support you, Nagato–" she addressed him tenderly, "–no matter what. But listening to this boy… it seems as if I were listening to Yahiko as well. I know you've noticed it too. Isn't that the reason we created the Akatsuki? To show the people the difference between right and wrong and to lend them our strength so they could stand up for themselves? "

"It was," the redheaded agreed with her. He closed his eyes for a moment, refusing to be overcome by the memories of his best friend and the feelings they brought with them. Then he opened them again. His gaze was cold. "It is what Yahiko believed in," he stated. "It was his dream. And he was murdered because of it."

"No," Konan didn't agree. She allowed her face to show her emotions this time. Her beautiful golden eyes were full of sadness. "Yahiko was killed because he wanted to protect me. Because he loved me. He loved both of us. But his death wasn't our fault Nagato. It wasn't _your_ fault."

She had never blamed her younger friend for the death of the man she loved, just as she had never blamed herself – even though she would've died a thousand times if it meant he was spared. It was Yahiko's nature to put others ahead of himself. He was born to be a protector, a leader. He was the bravest man she had ever met; he was clever and incredibly kind – and he had loved them both so much. Yahiko could have never lived with himself if he allowed something to happen to either of them.

No, Konan had never blamed Nagato for Yahiko's death. However, lost in her pain and her mourning, she had never told Nagato this – that it wasn't his fault – and perhaps her younger friend had needed to hear it.

"It wasn't your fault," she repeated wholeheartedly. "He died because he loved us… and I miss him every day, as much as you do. But Yahiko entrusted his dream to you. Nagato, he trusted you to make this dream come true. I don't know if this kid here–" her gaze travelled to Naruto for a moment, "– has the right idea, but don't we owe it to Yahiko to at least try?"

"Konan…" While he hadn't expected Konan to give her support to this jinchuuriki boy, it was her words of absolution that had brought tears to his eyes.

He had had blamed himself for Yahiko's death. Not as much as he had blamed Hanzo and Konoha, the true culprits – one who had already paid for it with his life and one who would pay for it very dearly someday soon as well – but hadn't his weakness been a contributor as well?

If he had been stronger, if he had acted quicker, if he hadn't been so trusting… He prided himself on his eyes, stating that there was nothing that could remain hidden from his sight, and yet, in the moment of truth, he had failed to see the trap that lay waiting in the dark for them. And Yahiko, the boy who saved him from starvation and who had adopted him into his family, lost his life because of it.

Hanzo and Konoha"s betrayal had turned his heart into stone, but it was the consequences of his own weaknesses that taught him that justice could never be achieved by peaceful means. Yahiko's goal was only a beautiful dream, but it was just that, a dream. People would never stop fighting each other willingly - not as long as they kept living into the bubble of their comfortable lives. Pain was necessary to truly bring change to the world. Pain and despair, like the ones Nagato himself had experience .

He had been so sure about that, that for years he had refused to consider any other possibility.

Was it be possible that he had made a mistake, though? That somehow his conclusions were wrong? Was there another way, indeed, to change the world?

"You said you came here to ask for my help," he reminded Naruto, deciding he would listen to his cousin's full story before making a decision one way or another.

Seeing this invitation for the opportunity that it was, Naruto didn't waste any time. He told Nagato and Konan everything he had learned about the history of his old village – the old feud between the Uchiha and the Senju –, the unwavering suspicions of the Nidaime Hokage towards Madara's clan and the far reaching consequences of such mistrust.

He told them about the Sandaime and about his own father – how he tried to improve the relationship between the clans of the village against the council's wishes, and how his premature death had prevented him from succeeding in this goal. He told him about the Hyuga and the curse seal, about Danzo's Root organization and what they did to children like Sai and Kabuto, and about the cruelness and unfairness of his own childhood. Finally he told him about the truth of the Uchiha massacre, and the role that Danzo played in it.

Nagato listened carefully, an expression of shock and horror growing on his features against his will. "And yet, despite all you told me, the people of Konoha chose this man as Hokage?" The blonde, who also had trouble understanding it, merely nodded. "Then I have a question for your friends."

* * *

 _A few moments earlier._

Sasuke was enjoying the fight. It was good to have an outlet for all the anguish and the rage that had been building inside him since they heard the news from Gaara. Even though he had agreed with the others to handle the matter tactfully, the knowledge that Danzo not only lived, but had been made Hokage by the people of Konoha burned inside of him, eating him up the moment he allowed himself to think about it.

The fact that he had already killed the man once helped. As it did to remember how pathetic he looked right before his death, and to remind himself that he had a long-time goal in mind this time. Vengeance alone wasn't enough anymore; the opportunity to live a long, happy life with Naruto and Itachi was.

Despite acknowledging these facts, fighting off the numerous bodies of Pain had turned out to be very therapeutic. The Animal and Naraka Path had joined the fight very as well, after it had became obvious that the two first bodies were going to be easily overpowered by Itachi and him. The remaining three bodies had taken only a little longer to show up.

They were all strong, fast and skilled, thus, they made a formidable adversary. It was also his first time since arriving to this universe that he had battled someone who wielded the same ocular technique as he, which had proven to be a golden opportunity to test the limits of his Rinnegan and to see how fast he could push those limits at the moment.

Nevertheless, the thing that made this fight truly exhilarating was the fact that he was fighting alongside his brother.

Itachi's analytical mind allowed him to improvise a strategy against each of Pain's bodies in a matter of seconds, which in turn allowed him and Sasuke to maximize their chakra reserves and endurance beyond what would be expected in any other circumstances. Had Sasuke been at the peak of his physical power this wouldn't be necessary, but his teenager body still had a long way to go before he reached the levels of chakra and stamina that he had possessed in the future.

This way, they made the perfect team. Itachi analysed the weakness of each of their opponents, came up with the best way to exploit it, and directed Sasuke to it. For his part, Sasuke did as instructed by means of quick and accurate attacks. It allowed them to keep up with Pain almost effortlessly and neither of them had to awaken the Mangekyō's most draining technique - Susanoo - to do so.

'This is how it was always supposed to be.'

The thought crossed Sasuke's mind more than once during the match. Two brothers fighting together, watching each other's back. Each of them unbelievably strong by themselves, together, unbeatable.

Every time, the thought was followed by a bittersweet taste in his mouth.

It could have been an hour or two when, finally, the Pain bodies that still stood before them began to retreat. It took Sasuke by surprise. He wasn't tired and he had barely felt the pass of time. He felt as if he could easily go through five hours more of the same thing. It was almost disappointing that they had given up so quickly.

At least that's how he felt until he turned around to look at his brother.

Itachi had one knee on the ground. He was holding one hand in front of his face and he stared at it with an unreadable expression upon his face. Sasuke's heart skipped a beat. He froze and, for a second, the world seemed to become still around him.

"Aniki?" Sasuke's throat felt sore; his voice was incredibly soft, nearly mute, and yet, somehow Itachi still heard him.

Itachi lifted his eyes to look at him, his gaze full of incredulity "He tricked me. He managed to kick me in the gut," his voice was firm, if slightly overshadowed by wonder. "I can't believe I fell for it."

Just like that, the fear that had threaten to paralyze his heart vanished and the world felt right again. "You'll have to be more careful next time," Sasuke said, forcing his lips to curve upwards until he was smiling. "We did a good job with them."

Before Itachi had time to reaffirm this thought, another figure approached them. It was Yahiko's body, one of the first Pains they had to face and the second they had disabled. The Naraka Path's had obviously restored him back to full capacity.

Sasuke's muscles tensed again, but Yahiko held his arms up. "I'm not here to fight again," he told them. "Nagato sent me. He has finished talking to your friend and would like to hear what you have to say as well."

The two brothers shared a quick look. Itachi was on his feet again. "We'll follow you," he said.

They ran after him for more than half an hour as Yahiko guided them to the heart of the city. Soon, the rain intensified, but it didn't completely block the view of the city.

The streets were overflowing with people; he could see merchants going about their business, children playing in the rain puddles, women and men carrying grocery bags, and even a few ninja patrolling the streets. Each and every one of them lowered their heads and made a path for them when they saw Pain, and there was a few of them who even uttered a few blessings in his name.

For a moment, Sasuke wondered if such devotion was real, a consequence of Pain's years of leadership and the changes he had brought to the country, or if it was born out of fear. Whatever the case was, he supposed he would find out soon.

Finally, Yahiko stopped in front a mansion that was unlike any of the buildings surrounding it. "The door is open," the redhead instructed them. "Nagato and your friend are on the first floor."

* * *

The two brothers walked into the office side by side; neither of them had to tell the other to keep their senses on high alert in order to be ready to detect and deflect any possible trap. Naruto's gaze fell upon Sasuke first. Their eyes met, silently reassuring each other, and something seemed to calm down in the blond's chest. Then they drifted to Itachi. Silently, Naruto let him know that all was well. The oldest Uchiha nodded imperceptibly, understanding the message.

After those brief exchanges, everybody's attention shifted back to Nagato. They all looked at him, including Konan.

"I imagine you are wondering why I brought you here?" The redhead asked of Itachi and Sasuke, whose features gave nothing away. He didn't wait for their answer and proceeded to explain. "Naruto has told me of all the grievances and crimes Konoha's current Hokage, a man named Danzo, committed against you and your family. Naruto affirms you have the power to kill him and extract revenge, and yet, neither of you will chose to do so. If he speaks the truth, I wish to know why."

The request surprised them both. Itachi recovered a lot faster. Foreseeing the conflict that such a question would surely awake in his brother's mind, he decided it would be wise for him to answer it first.

"I do want to kill him, make no mistake," he clarified very seriously. "Whatever my clan's faults were, it was Danzo's jealousy and irrational fear of the Uchiha that led him to insulate them, and to block every attempt at a peaceful solution to the conflict when it was still avertable. He might have claimed that his actions were always for the wellbeing of Konoha, but it wasn't Konoha's well being that he was thinking of when he stole my cousin's eye and tried to end his life. It was his own ambitions."

Although he had not risen his voice, there was no mistaking the anger that infused his words. It shocked Sasuke, who had always taken his brother's distaste for revenge as a result of his forgiving and peaceful nature, to hear such fury coming from him.

Itachi's next words reinforced this idea. "Furthermore, the man has proven time and time again that there isn't a limit he won't cross as long as he can justify it to himself – including the torture of children. This not only makes him unsuited for the role of Hokage, but also a danger to Konoha and all its citizens," he stated severely. "And yet," he added holding Nagato's gaze, "even if it wasn't so, I would still yearn to kill him. Danzo broke the agreement we made the moment he gave the order to kill my brother. Sasuke's continued survival was the only condition I made when I agree to exterminate our clan. He broke his word, I need no more reason than that to wish him dead."

"And yet, despite all this, you will not seek to kill him?" Nagato remarked, truly curious.

"I've killed dozens of people who deserved it less than him," Itachi admitted, dropping his gaze to the floor for just a second. "But Danzo is no longer a private citizen. He is the Kage of a Great Nation. His murder would be taken as an attack against the Fire Nation and it could lead to a war. I murdered my clan because I couldn't allow the ambition of a few dozen, no matter how just or justified, be the cause for the death of thousands. If I were to choose my own ambition now, over the wellbeing of a country, I would be dishonouring my parents' death. I can't do that," he finished, holding Nagato's gaze without shame.

Seeing the logic and the strength behind such a statement, the redhead turned his attention to Sasuke. "What about you? What's stopping you from extracting your revenge?"

"Nothing so sophisticated, I assure you," he answered. Sasuke was more than happy to leave the moral high ground to Itachi. "I hate him, and I'd kill him, and I'd feel fucking great about it," he stated plainly. "But then I'd be declared an S-Rank criminal. Konoha would blame me, they'd curse my name, and they'd never know they are the real monster for putting _that man_ in power." That was the thing that irked him the most. "They deserve to know. I want them to know what their indifference has cost me. I want them to feel guilty and horrified by _his_ actions and by _their own_ actions. Only after that happens is Danzo allowed to die. I won't even mind if I'm not the one who kills him."

The passion and honesty behind such a simple declaration entranced Nagato. That was a sweeter more refined way of revenge that had never occurred to him. Even Konan was looking at Sasuke with interest. "So you do want revenge?" She asked him.

"Of course I do," Sasuke stated as a matter of fact. "But first, everyone in Konoha must know what they _allowed_ to happen – so that maybe they will think about it twice before following the same path again. Besides, I also want a chance to live a good life afterwards." His eyes glazed over Itachi and Naruto. "Vengeance is not worth everything." It had taken him a long time to understand this, but finally, he believed it.

Nagato and Konan shared a long look. Whatever silent massage passed between them, after a few seconds, they both seemed to reach an agreement. Nagato's eyes shifted to Naruto. "You agree with him?"

"I agree Danzo needs to be stopped," Naruto replied immediately. He hated the man for destroying Sasuke's life and now attempting to do the same with Gaara's. He fucking deserved to die just for that. But revenge wasn't Naruto's main motivator. "No one else should suffer because of him, and he won't change – so he needs to be stopped. But it has to be the people from Konoha who stop him. Sasuke is right. If we killed him - even if we kill him in secret, as easy as it'd be -, they would learn nothing. They must learn to take responsibility for their actions and mistakes, or men like Danzo will keep getting into power again and again. And then, innocent people like Gaara and Yahiko will suffer and die for it."

Naruto's gaze was bright with determination as he looked at Nagato. "I told you: a person alone cannot change the world. But if we can get them proof of the terrible things Danzo has done over the years, once we present it to the clans, Konoha won't be able to ignore it. They will have to do the right thing, I just know it."

Nagato could not fault him for his faith. Slowly, he nodded towards his cousin. "Very well, Naruto Uzumaki, you have persuaded me. We will try it your way. For now."

* * *

 _Christmas is here! I know, it's a weird way to start my AN, but this is probably my last update before Christmas... so I have to say it. Merry Christmas everybody! I hope you all have a lovely holiday. In my case, my parents and sisters are flying to London to stay with me, and I rented a flat for the week so that we all can stay together._

 _I have tickets for Mamma Mia, for Harry Potter studios, for Winter Wonderland… - and I'm really looking forward to it! :-)_

 _Do you know what I didn't get tickets for? Star Wars: the Last Jedi. Obviously, I already watched it – the day before yesterday. And I hate it. I was planning to get tickets so that we all could go and watch together, but I'm not stepping into a cinema again for that movie._

 _Really, I'm pissed off – but above all, I'm heartbroken. I'm not giving away any spoilers, don't worry, but I feel that Disney took away a character I deeply love (Luke Skywalker), and they not only destroyed his personally and character, but turned him into a laughing stock. The Luke I know and love is the most loving, kind and compassionate man in the galaxy – sometimes to the point of naivety. He refused to kill Vader, for Force's sake. He would never, ever behave like they show us in the movie._

 _I'm not saying that movie is not enjoyable – but I really broke my heart seeing Luke like that._

 _So please, feel free to cheer me up with your comments, because I really need it._

 _Now, about the actual chapter, there is not much to say. I hope you enjoyed it. Writing Naruto is very difficult for me, as I'm much more similar to Sasuke in character and personality, but I hope I didn't disappoint you. Some of you asked why they did just kill Danzo in secret and be done with it – so I hope this chapter will have answered that question._

 _Yes, they could kill Danzo in secret. They are actually powerful enough to kill anyone in secret – but where do they draw the line? Is it moral? And more importantly, if they do it – what will the people from Konoha have learn from the experience?_

 _I think it's very important that the people take responsibility by their actions and learn from their mistakes as well. Even the worse tragedies in history like the Holocaust or the American Civil War have taught us something – but if someone had come to solve all the problems without giving us the chance to see the consequences of our actions or lack of thereof, we wouldn't have learn anything at all – and slavery might still be a thing._

 _And now, I'm very excited about the next chapter. The last scene of the next chapter is one of the first I imagined when I began thinking about his fic. It's a huge step for SasuNaruSasu – and I'm sure you are gonna love it. If all goes well, I'll post it in two weeks as my New Year's gift to all of you. What do you think?_


	19. Chapter 19

Hello everyone! As I promised, the new chapter is here, right in time for New Years! I want to thank everyone for your kind words and support in the comments. It means the world to me.

I also want to thank my betas Kiesyke and Yfere for their help. I'm so thankful to both of them! Yfere is an absolute genious. Her suggestions and feedback improved this chapter a tenfold.

This is my favourite chapter up to this moment, so I hope you all enjoy it!

* * *

 **Chapter 19**

 _Two weeks later, Amekagure..._

All in all, Amegakure was not a bad place to live. It was a buoyant city, full of people and activity – always moving – , and ts population was high enough that most people didn't know each other, and they cared little for gossip – which pleased Sasuke. From what he had observed, most people seemed quite pleased with the way things were run.

In addition to that, their living arrangements left nothing to be desired. The manor was huge, warm and comfortable - even though only the ground, first and second floor were habitable. Each of them had been given their own lodgings in the east corridor of the first floor, which allowed them some privacy, since Konan's and Nagato's rooms were located in the west corridor.

Every morning, two ladies came to clean the first two floors and cook a couple of meals for the day – but they only worked for a few hours and avoided contact with the residents. Sasuke knew there was also a young girl who came every other day to work in the gardens, but he rarely saw her. Otherwise, the mansion received no visitors – which suited him just fine.

The company wasn't too bad either. Just as Naruto had predicted, Nagato and Konan become quite invested in their plan to out Danzo for the evil bastard he was. The blue haired girl had bought Sasuke's argument and it was obvious that she craved to see the man face justice for the death of her lover – at this point, Sasuke was quite sure they had been lovers, even if nobody had said it out loud.

Nagato, on the other hand, was completely devoted to bringing Naruto's idea to life. It hadn't been so at first. He agreed to help them reluctantly and, even then, seemed to view their strategy as a fool's errand, an experiment meant to fail. Even if they succeeded in taking down Danzo, he didn't fully believe that it would affect the way people thought and behaved.

Sasuke couldn't pinpoint the precise moment Nagato's outlook had changed. Perhaps it had been a gradual process. However, he suspected the reason for this change of heart had little to do with politics and more to do with his growing fascination with Naruto. In the weeks they had been living in Amegakure, the two had grown very close.

Unfortunately, despite succeeding in bringing Nagato and Konan to their side, they had not been able to locate any proof of Danzo's dealings with Hanzo during the war.

It wasn't even that surprising. The day after their arrival, Konan told them how the country was completely destroyed by the civil war - most towns and villages burned to ashes during the fights. Hanzo himself gave the order to burn the capital to the ground after it became obvious that he lost the war. Nagato killed him two days later.

Two weeks passed before it became obvious to everyone - namely, Naruto and Nagato - that their current search wasn't going anywhere. Once that finally happened, they called for a group meeting in the library.

Since the office where they had met Konan and Nagato for the first time was too small to accommodate five people comfortably, the library had become their favourite meeting place. At Naruto's insistence, they met there regularly to update each other about each person's findings.

By all rights, Sasuke should be quite annoyed by this, especially considering that none of them had found anything useful and most days there wasn't anything to report, but he found Naruto's resolve quite endearing. It made Naruto happy, and besides, Sasuke liked the library.

The room was cosy despite its enormous size. It occupied almost half the space of the second floor. There were several rounds of bookshelves enveloping two corners of the room. The outside wall was practically covered by four identical windows with transoms and custom mouldings framing the view of the outside garden. The last wall was made of rustic, red bricks and it was sparsely decorated with traditional handmade tools and a few pictures.

There were also several armchairs distributed across the library, and an oval table they used for their meetings surrounded by eight comfortable chairs located between a bookshelf and the fireplace. It was made of thick, expensive wood, and it could not be more elegant.

"We need an alternative plan," Naruto's words opened the meeting, even though it was Nagato who sat at the head of the table. Unsurprisingly, he didn't beat around the bush and got straight to the point. "We are not getting anything on Danzo here, so we need to look somewhere else."

"And if there isn't any evidence?" Sasuke asked, mostly to be difficult.

"There has to be," the blond responded without a hint of hesitation. "The man is a crook. He's been committing crimes right and left for decades. There is no way that he didn't slip up at least once."

That was probably true, but the world was a huge place and ninja fed on secrets. Sasuke turned his head to look at Itachi – who sat opposite to him on the other side of the table, next to Konan – hoping that he could come up with a new idea. But it was the blue haired woman who spoke first, surprising everybody.

"Even though you are probably right," she addressed Naruto, "we have no way of knowing when or where he slipped, and who was there to cover his tracks. It's a matter of luck. As it is now, with the five of us, years may pass and we may find nothing. You came to us for help. We might not have records of Danzo's dealings with Hanzo, but we do have valuable resources. I propose that we use them."

Itachi caught her meaning immediately. "You mean the Akatsuki?"

Konan nodded. "Why not? They are not only trained killers, they are also spies – and fucking good ones, most of them. We ask them all to bring us solid dirt on Danzo, it won't take them more than a few months to do. "

Naruto seemed reluctant; it was clear that he didn't enjoy the idea of working along with mercenaries. Sasuke supposed he had a point. It was foolish to trust someone whose loyalty could be bought, and people always fought harder when they did it for something or someone they believed in. But the idea had merit. As things were, it was probably the best chance to take down the bastard bloodlessly and quickly.

"It would also be useful to keep them occupied," he said, in favor of Konan's idea. "Since Pain ordered them to stop the search for the Jinchūriki, some of them are bound to get impatient. Bored and dangerous is not a good combination."

The argument was compelling. And as Sasuke had expected, it erased much of the previous hesitation from Naruto's features.

Sasuke looked away, a little guilty. Itachi caught his gaze, then – his sharp eyes gleamed with amusement as he lifted his eyebrows, a teasing expression upon his features. But his face regained seriousness a second later, when he spoke. "If we do this, there is no way that Obito won't get suspicious."

In their second meeting, they had informed Nagato and Konan of Tobi's real identity as well as their suspicions about what his real plan was. They had been surprised about the first revelation, as they had believed him to be Madara, but not so much about the second. They had never trusted him – especially Konan.

"I'm sure he is suspicious already," Nagato interrupted.

Silently, Sasuke agreed with him. To his right, Naruto bit his lip. He was most likely feeling torn between the need to prevent the war, and his desire to save Kakashi's old friend.

In the aforementioned meeting, the five of them agreed to make Danzo their top priority. Since several years would have to pass before Obito had a chance to carry out his plans, at the moment, Danzo presented a more time sensitive threat. The idea was to get rid of Danzo quickly and, once he was down, focus all their efforts on Obito and Zetsu. However, considering their lack of progress in the last three weeks, perhaps it was time to reconsider this strategy.

Konan was thinking along the same lines. "Then let him come. We can deal with him."

"He is more dangerous than you think," Itachi warned her.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "I have studied his fighting style for years," she answered. "I am not underestimating him. I know what his weaknesses are. And I know I can take him down."

Itachi gestured her to keep talking, and the four men listened intently as she explained her battle strategy. It was good. Really good. Simple but efficient. Sasuke would be careful not to underestimate her in the future, although he didn't think she'd turn against them – she was completely loyal to Nagato, and Nagato would not betray Naruto.

Itachi to seemed impressed by her clever plan, and this time, he did not try to conceal it.

"It's a good plan," he spoke after her. "The strategy is solid and you know him well. There is no way he won't fall into that trap. But he will survive it."

The woman scowled, but in her favour, she didn't dismiss his words right away. "How?"

Sasuke let his thoughts wander while Itachi explained to Konan and Nagato about Izanagi and Izanami. Obito would use the first one to escape death, there was no doubt. That was most likely how he had managed to kill Konan back in their universe – after Nagato died and she decided to confront him.

"But wouldn't it be possible to take him down right after he uses it?" Naruto questioned aloud after Itachi had finished his explanation. "He'll be distracted, then. Sure of his victory."

"He will move to kill her. His defeat will make him angry, and he won't risk his remaining eye by taking Konan in a fair fight," Itachi predicted.

"I could use a Body Replacement Technique right before I kill him," she reasoned. "Replace myself with a clone..."

"And I can easily hide in the clone's shadow, and use my Rasengan to knock him down after he kills the clone," Naruto volunteered.

Only Konan seemed surprised by this. It told a lot about the relationship that had developed between Naruto and Nagato over the last two weeks, that the red-head knew the blond well enough to guess he would rather take Obito alive than dead.

Sasuke was still unsure how he felt about that.

"Knock him down? You don't intend to kill him?" Konan demanded to know.

Sasuke, who would not give Obito a chance to live to fight another day if it were only up to him, spoke before Naruto could – which earned him a glare from his friend. "We should at least bring him alive to interrogate him. We can discuss what else to do with him afterwards."

Both Konan and Naruto narrowed their eyes at him – neither of them pleased with this suggestion. But Itachi supported Sasuke, "I agree." And, surprisingly, so did Nagato, who nodded to show his approval.

It was three against two. Konan pressed her lips together in a mask of displeasure, but accepted the verdict. Sasuke could see that Naruto was yearning to press the matter – he was biting his tongue and his brows were furrowed – but he too remained silent. He was probably preparing a strong argument for a later time, and he'd get his way at the end, Sasuke didn't doubt it.

For now, they all should focus on something else. "We can't forget about Zetsu," Sasuke reminded the four of them, partly to change the subject, but mostly because he had fought the fucking thing and knew how dangerous he was. "He is a fanatic and can't be reasoned with. And he'd do anything at all to be reunited with his fucking mother. We can't let him go unwatched, especially not after we take Obito down."

"He will probably show up to watch Obito and Konan fight," Itachi reasoned.

"I'm not so sure about that," Nagato disagreed. "He knows I won't allow any Akatsuki within the limits of the city, and he fears the Rinnegan too much to go against my wishes."

Itachi nodded, accepting this. "Could you not ask him to come?"

"It'd make him suspicious…"

"Not necessarily," Konan intervened. "Not if you ask him to trail Obito instead. He knows we distrust him but he doesn't know that we know they are working together. He'll have to do as you ask, if only to keep his cover."

"That would work," Nagato agreed, after considering Konan's suggestion. "But is it wise?" He asked, his gaze travelling from Konan to Naruto. "If you what you tell us is true, he might not be very strong but he is virtually immortal."

Naruto furrowed his brow, taking the question seriously. Sasuke knew what he was thinking about. Zetsu had been one of their most dangerous enemies during the war. He was cunning, lethal and unremorseful. Using his Body Multiplication Technique, he had killed thousands of soldiers – a good part the Allied Shinobi Forces. Some of them had been Naruto's friends.

Even after they had gotten a power boost from Hagoromo, getting rid of Zetsu had not been easy. At the end, Naruto had to seal him away along with his fucking nutcase of a mother – but that wasn't an option this time.

"I believe I have a solution for that," Itachi spoke up, catching everyone's attention. "If either of you can use the Rinnegan to subdue him for half of a minute," he addressed Nagato and Sasuke, "I believe I can use the Sword of Totsuka to seal him away for good."

"The one that is wielded by your Susanoo?" Sasuke asked him, remembering how Itachi had used that technique during their last confrontation to free him from the Curse Seal by sealing away Orochimaru. The memory made him uncomfortable. He hated to be reminded of the hatred he had borne against his brother for so long.

Itachi nodded, unaware of his train of thought. "Indeed."

"If I use the Preta Path to absorb Zetsu's chakra, he'll be unable to get away," Nagato answered Itachi's previous question. "And we can set up several traps to ensure he can't escape in case he manages to evade me. If that happens, then you can use the Preta Path yourself," he said to Sasuke. "We know he won't be expecting you."

The five of them agreed. That very same day, Nagato used Yahiko's body to contact the Akatsuki and pass along the new orders. The day after, Konan took them to the location she had selected for her fight with Tobi – near the river, in the outskirts of the city – and they set up several traps – one or two meant for Tobi but most of them designed to prevent Zetsu from escaping if the initial ambush failed.

Afterwards, there was nothing else for them to do but wait.

Two weeks later, another meeting took place. They were all in the library, occupying their usual places: Nagato at the head of the table, Naruto to his left and Konan to his right. Sasuke was seated next to Naruto and Itachi opposite to him, next to Konan.

On this occasion, it was Nagato who opened the meeting. "I've got my first reports from the Akatsuki. Sasori and Deidara have successfully infiltrated Iwagakure. The Tsuchikage employs the Akatsuki often, so it wasn't hard for them to find a way in. Also Deidara is originally from there. He was not pleased with this type of mission, but they both believe they'll be able to obtain the proof we seek fairly soon. In addition, Sasori has at his disposal an extensive spy network, and he has expressed his willingness to use them in this endeavour."

Around the table, everyone nodded – happy with the news.

Nagato continued speaking. "Kakuzu and Hidan were working on another job up until five days ago and I was unable to contact them. Then, I–"

"What kind of job?" Naruto interrupted him, with a frown.

The redhead didn't seem upset in the slightest. "They'd been hired to locate and dispatch a missing ninja from Suna who was selling her village secrets to Kawa before she was discovered", he answered honestly.

"Oh," Naruto looked a bit stunned by this revelation, unsure of how to react. He didn't approve of killing people, but selling your village's secrets was a serious crime. Only a despicable person would endanger their comrades' lives for the sake of money. "Okay."

Nagato took this word as permission to continue speaking. "I sent them to Kirigakure. It's a small country, but Kirigakure has the bloodiest history of all ninja villages and they are close neighbors to Konoha. I believe there is a good chance that they'll find something to incriminate Danzo there."

Again, everyone nodded. They had already discussed the villages that were more likely to have or have had some connection to Danzo, and Kiri was a wise choice.

"But will they be able to stay on task?" Itachi spoke up before Nagato could continue. . "There is a reason why Kakuzu and Hidan are always assigned to termination missions. They are not stable."

That was an understatement. Sasuke hadn't had the pleasure of meeting either of them in person, but from what he heard, they were both nutcases. Especially the religious fanatic. He didn't miss the way Konan's face twisted into an obvious display of displeasure at the mention of their names, either, or the way Naruto turned his hands into fists, which only reinforced this idea.

"Kakuzu will keep Hidan in line," Nagato assured them. "I told him we had been promised an extraordinary amount of money in exchange for a successful mission, and he won't let Hidan ruin such an opportunity. However, once we have the proof we need, we'll need to take care of them."

"Both of them?" Sasuke asked, curious.

"Hidan is a sick person," Konan explained with obvious distaste. "If we don't give him people to kill he'll find them somewhere else. Kakuzu is simply a mercenary. If we make a habit of refusing profitable jobs for the moral aspect of it, he will leave and go somewhere else."

That wasn't an option for obvious reasons. They would have to kill them both before they had the chance to kill someone else. Otherwise, the responsibility for any deaths they might cause would fall on their shoulders as well.

"We have enough on our plate at the moment. We should resume this conversation at a later date, once they have completed their current assignment. If you are sure they won't stray?" Itachi suggested, looking at Nagato for confirmation, who nodded.

The redhead moved to the last topic of the meeting. "I sent Kisame to Yugakure by himself, seeing as he hasn't found a partner to replace Itachi yet. However he hasn't contacted me since we spoke a week ago, so I'm not sure about his whereabouts." He searched Itachi's gaze as he said this, questioning.

"Kisame's loyalty has always been to Tobi – who he believes to be Madara. If he had disappeared, I'm afraid he had done so on his orders. They might be planning something." Itachi's voice did not shudder, but he sounded somewhat regretful.

Even if Itachi never said it outright, Sasuke knew he and Kisame had become closer than mere coworkers over the years. He had only to listen to Itachi's stories about the last few years to infer that his brother cared for the fish-face man, and the possibility of having to face him in opposite sides of a fight made him uncomfortable.

"We'll have to prepare for this eventuality as well," Konan spoke up again. "Kisame is not mad, but that makes him even more dangerous than the other two."

Itachi nodded, accepting this statement as the truth.

Seeing as there wasn't anything else to report, the meeting was dissolved. Konan left first, after sharing a few words with Nagato. Sasuke still didn't know what role she played in the city government, but he rarely saw her outside of meetings during the day. They met more than a few times at breakfast time in the kitchen, seeing as they were both early risers - and Sasuke was somewhat curious about her. But unlike Nagato - who took very seriously his role as the leader of the Akatsuki, and whose devotion for Naruto was obvious -, she remained very much a mystery.

Sasuke shrugged internally. Naruto was much better than him at reading and understanding people. Perhaps he would figure her out, and then tell him all about it.

Speaking of whom, Naruto rose to his feet. He turned his head to look at Sasuke, and his face lifted when Sasuke met his gaze. He was obviously in high spirits – his eyes were shiny and playful and his smile teasing. And why not? They were making progress. Slowly but surely. The trap for Obito and Zetsu was already set. They only needed to wait for them to trigger it – and then, they'll have succeeded in aborting the war. They were also closing in on Danzo, even if much slower than Sasuke would wish.

Sasuke opened his mouth to tell him so, but Nagato addressed Naruto before he could, stealing away his attention. "Will you accompany me for my walk in the gardens?"

Sasuke was mostly ignored after that.

He watched them leave the room with a frown – Nagato seated in his wheelchair, and Naruto pushing it from behind. They already made a familiar picture. Something twisted on his guts as he looked at them. He ignored it.

Instead, he noticed Itachi approaching him from the opposite side of the table and decided to make a hasty exit. As much as he usually enjoyed the time they spent together, Itachi's sharp eyes saw too much and his brother was looking at him with a glint in his expression that Sasuke didn't like. He would rather be alone for a while than face him.

Sasuke walked down the corridor towards the stairs, wishing for the privacy of his room. As he approached his suit, he reflected on the events of the last few weeks.

Sasuke was honestly enjoying living in Amegakure.

The hustle of the city appealed to him – it didn't make him feel oppressed and caged like Konoha always had; instead, it brought him to life with its many possibilities. And yet, some days, Sasuke missed the simplicity of the life that they had enjoyed back in Rock Country – when it was only Itachi, Naruto, Sasuke and no one else.

Nowadays Itachi was often busy. He spent a lot of time in the library learning about Amegakure's history and economy and showed little interest in training – even though, every day, he made sure to spend some time with Sasuke. And Naruto… Naruto was very happy having Nagato around.

As if to confirm that thought, upon entering his room, Sasuke's footsteps took him to the window. He could see Naruto from there, pushing Nagato's wheelchair through the gardens. The blond spent an awful lot time with Nagato… but Sasuke shouldn't be upset about that.

He wasn't.

It wasn't like he ignored Sasuke. Naruto and he had adjacent rooms. They trained together every morning, and usually they had lunch together afterwards. Sasuke was still Naruto's best friend- nobody would change that.

Another pair of footsteps entered the room, interrupting his thoughts. Sasuke didn't need to turn around to know that the footsteps belonged to Itachi. It didn't surprise him that he had followed him, although it annoyed him. So he ignored him. He hoped against hope that by not acknowledging his presence, his brother would get the hint and leave him alone.

Instead, Itachi approach him and stopped at the window, next to Sasuke. His eyes followed Sasuke's gaze.

It took Itachi only a few seconds to break the silence.

"You know, there is no reason for you to be jealous."

Instead of denying it, Sasuke answered honestly, "I know. They are cousins." It wasn't that different from his own relationship with Itachi, after all. They were family. Family and friends were different things, and jealousy had no place between them.

Itachi smiled all too knowingly, and only then, did Sasuke realize his mistake. He should have simply denied it. Now his brother wouldn't leave it well alone. He returned his gaze to the window, determined to ignore any attempts to engage him in further conversation.

"You know very well that one can be jealous of family," Itachi remarked pointedly. Back in their childhood days, Sasuke loved his brother very much, but he was also jealous of him – especially of the way their father doted on him. "But that's not what I meant."

Against his will, Sasuke turned his head to meet at Itachi's eyes again – his gaze searching. "What did you mean?"

"I mean that Naruto is in love with you," Itachi answered frankly. "So you'll always come first in his affections."

Sasuke's heart skipped a beat.

"That's crazy," he said.

The claim was utterly ridiculous.

It was nonsense.

"I think it's quite obvious, actually," replied his brother, "– especially for someone who's been trained to identify and play people's emotions. He loves you."

Of course Naruto loved him. It was never a question if Naruto loved him. Sasuke loved him too – even if he wasn't as good as showing it as his friend was. They were best friends. "He is not in love with me," he repeated.

Itachi didn't contradict him, instead he simply looked at Sasuke, a patronising expression upon his features. There was a hint of amusement in his eyes, but it was mostly overshadowed by exasperation. As if Sasuke were been obtuse on purpose.

"You are wrong," Sasuke said again, confused - because there was no way that Naruto was in love with him. What the hell did that even mean, anyway?

"He told me so himself," Itachi told him, and there was a tenderness on his gaze that had not been there before. It made Sasuke feel small – like a child again.

Then he realised what he had just heard.

"Naruto?" His brother nodded, patiently. "What exactly did he tell you?"

"I believe I told him: 'you are in love with my brother'. And then he answered, 'yes, I am'."

Sasuke supposed that there was no mistaking an answer like that. Unless Itachi were lying, of course. He was an exceptional liar, and he had lied to Sasuke before. In fact, most of the things that Sasuke believed about his brother for years had turned to be untrue.

But–

Sasuke held his brother's gaze, and the concern that he saw reflected on his brother's eyes was sincere. Itachi wasn't lying to him now. He was telling the truth.

But then, that meant–.

"When?" He demanded.

When did that happen and how the hell did Sasuke miss it?

"The first night we met, after you have fallen unconscious. I carried you to your room, and I was ready to leave again – I thought it would be the best for you," Itachi remembered, his gaze apologetic. "Naruto stopped me. The way he talked about you… I knew right away that he was in love with you."

It was proof of how much this revelation unsettled him that Sasuke hardly noticed the meaning behind his brother's words – that Itachi tried to leave again, after he promised him to stay. Instead, he needed to make sure, so he asked again, "But you did ask him."

Itachi raised his eyebrows in exasperation and didn't dignify that with a response. Right. He already answered that question a couple of minutes ago.

So, Naruto– Naruto was in love with him. He had been for almost half a year, apparently. Longer than that? Sasuke didn't notice anything before. Then again, he never noticed anything at all.

"Why didn't he tell me?" He asked his brother.

He wanted to believe that Naruto trusted him enough to share his feelings with him, especially where they were related to him. Above all, he hoped Naruto trusted Sasuke enough to know that he wouldn't turn his back on him for something like that.

"He didn't want you to know," his brother explained. "He didn't think you returned his feelings, and didn't want to make you feel as if you owed him something."

That was so typical of Naruto – it almost made Sasuke smile. He could picture that. His best friend had the habit of putting Sasuke's interests before his own – even in times when it was truly necessary. Like now.

"It's going to be alright, Sasuke." Sasuke looked up at Itachi again, fully aware that his gaze betrayed all inner turmoil he was feeling but, for once, not caring about it. His brother smiled tenderly at him and poked him on the forehead once. "You should be happy. Naruto is in love with you. It means he will always choose you."

That was sweet, but it wasn't helpful at all. Itachi should be a good brother and help him make sense of his thoughts. He already turned Sasuke's world upside down… and yet, Sasuke couldn't deny the relief he felt after hearing his brother's words. On the other hand, it also increased his confusion.

Itachi chose that moment to leave, and Sasuke didn't stop him. He was still in shock – unable to process the idea properly.

What did it mean, anyway, that Naruto was in love with him?

As far as he knew, the blonde had never showed romantic interest in anyone before. He had an annoying crush on Sakura growing up, true, but then he chose not to pursue her after the war – even though they both knew she would've said yes if he asked her out. And he hadn't shown any interest for Hinata either – even though everybody knew that the Hyuga girl had been in love with him since forever.

Naruto had… sex. The discovery had made Sasuke slightly uncomfortable at first, but they shared a flat, and as much as Naruto tried to be discreet, Sasuke figured it out pretty soon. Besides, the people in the village talked – sometimes too much. Another reason to dislike them.

Naruto liked having sex. He even kept a collection of the same shitty books that Kakashi carried with him everywhere hidden under his bed back in their home universe. Sasuke had found it awkward at first, but he grew used to it. He knew that Naruto was reading porn in the bathtub right before Gaara teleported to their room, and he even kept the book after he found it in the floor to tease him about it at the right moment.

But Naruto never had a permanent sex partner – a lover. It was always strangers and only for one night, with one exception - and Sasuke didn't like to think about it. Nevertheless, Naruto had not been in love with him or any of them. Even though Sasuke didn't completely understand it, Naruto just liked having sex.

But what did it mean to be in love?

Sasuke knew that Naruto loved him – he had loved him for years, since they have been assigned to Team 7 together. They had been children then, which meant that his love for him was not of a romantic nature. Naruto loved him and was also in love with him.

Did it mean he also wanted to have sex with Sasuke, beside being friends?

The prospect wasn't completely horrifying, but it also didn't entice him. And anyway, Naruto had sex with people he wasn't in love with, so it couldn't be just that. There had to be something else.

Sasuke shook his head and closed his eyes in frustration. No matter how much he tried, he couldn't come up with a suitable answer. He could not leave the matter like this, and he knew Itachi would only offer him more cryptic answers, which only left one viable solution. He would have to talk to Naruto. He was still unsure how to address the issue, but Naruto was his best friend and Sasuke would be damned if he let this revelation erode the trust they had built.

Determined, he walked out his room and approached the stairs to the garden. He didn't care that Nagato was also there. He knew that if he asked the blond to come with him, he would follow Sasuke without hesitation. Then they could talk, and perhaps he would figure out what it meant and how he felt about it.

Unfortunately for him, he hadn't yet reached the first floor when the alarms rang. Sasuke knew what that meant. Obito had crossed the border to Amekagure.

* * *

 _Well? What do you think? Did you expect Sasuke to find out like this? Did I surprise you? What do you think made Itachi tell Sasuke? What is Sasuke going to do now that he knows? Do you think he feels the same way?_

 _So many questions… But seriously, I'm so excited! I had this scene planed from the very beginning. When I began to think about writing this fic, I had two or three scenes in my head – one was Sasuke in his knees begging Itachi to love him (chapter 9), and the other one was this one. Itachi telling Sasuke that Naruto is in love with him._

 _As you saw, Sasuke is very confused. He doesn't even know what being in love means, which I think it's very in cannon with the character. I always thought that Sasuke was asexual, or at least, demisexual, because human sexuality is developed from early childhood and traumatic experiences as children/teenagers can often cripple this development. I also think that teen Sasuke suffered from PTSD, and there is a very close relationship between PTSD and asexuality._

 _In all honestly, I don't think Sasuke could handle anyone touching him too closely – and I don't mean just sexually. He is super aware of his space bubble. Only very select people like Naruto and Itachi are allowed to break these invisible barrier, and it's only them that Sasuke seems to welcome their touch._

 _Now, I don't think Sasuke was born this way. When we saw him as a child, he was very sweet and he expressed and accepted affection much more freely, which leads me to believe that maybe he could accept those touches from someone "especial", someone he loves and trust with all his heart._

 _But yeah, I can say, in time, Sasuke and Naruto's relationship will be a sexual one, but meanwhile Sasuke is going to be very, very confused – and also jealous. Or maybe the right word is possessive? He is too confident on Naruto's affection for him to really be jealous, but he is very possessive – a very common trait for asocial people who only have one or two persons in their lives._

 _Please, let me know your thoughts in the matter. Do you agree with Sasuke's portrayal? What do you think is going to happen next? I'm afraid next chapter is going to have a lot of action and only one intimate moment at the end, but it'll be very sweet, I promise._

 _Now, let me wish you all a very Happy New Year. 2018 is upon us and I hope we all have a fantastic year. My two resolutions for this New Year are to finish this fic properly and to start writing my own original novel – so let's see how it works!_

* * *

 _Pd: In an unrelated note, if you watched The Last Jedi and didn't like it, you might enjoy my review of the movie. Well, it's more like me ranting about it. / watch?v = UauLr10bqTI_


	20. Chapter 20

_Hi huys! It's been ages, I know. But summer is finally here. I'm on holidays so I'll be able to update this story more often. I want to thank Mia for the amazing job she has done editing this chapter, I could have gotten the chapter ready without her._

 _I hope you all enjoy it!_

* * *

Everyone was waiting in their designated spots, carefully hidden out of sight. They had been preparing for this event for four weeks, and Naruto was confident that everything would go according to the plan. Even so, the wait was hard. He could hear his heart beating heavily in his chest and feel his muscles stiffen for every second that passed by without detecting any enemy activity.

The alarms went off three hours ago, indicating that Obito had crossed Amekagure's border. Upon hearing them, all of them but Nagato – who had sent three of his bodies instead, dispatching the other four to guard the city – hurried up towards the bridge. It was there at the bridge, that Konan had setup the trap for Obito. The plan was for her to intercept Obito once he crossed the border and lead him to the bridge.

For two and a half hours they calmly waited for Obito to arrive, but about twenty minutes ago Naruto sensed Konan's chakra flared up and knew that she and Obito had finally begun fighting. After that, every second of waiting felt like an eternity.

Itachi and Sasuke's hidden spots were half a mile further down the bridge, while the Pain's bodies were hiding sixty feet underwater. These locations were strategically selected – since the Uchihas main goal was to discover Zetsu's location and neutralize the threat, whereas the Pain bodies were there as back up for whoever needed it – but their presence didn't help ease the anxious tension Naruto was feeling.

He wished Sasuke was here with him. Naruto could picture Sasuke arrogantly smirking at him with his eyebrows arched and a teasing gleam in his eyes that would make the heaviness in Naruto's chest feel lighter.

Upon realizing where his train of thought had taken him, Naruto chastised himself. His attention had to be on the battle at hand, not on Sasuke.

Finally, after what it seemed like an eternity and a half, Naruto sensed Konan's and Obito's chakra rapidly approaching the bridge. They were engaged in a battle of Taijutsu, but from time to time, they also used Ninjutsu against each other. Their attacks were extremely lethal, and it was evident that just one mistake from either opponent would cost them their lives.

Once they arrived to his hidden location, Naruto was able to take a better look at the both of them. Fatigue had etched lines into Konan's facial expression. He noticed her squinting eyes, pursed lips, and a limp increasingly favouring her injured leg – all signs that she was running on willpower and not much more. Obito's breathing was as uneven as hers, the bottom of his mask broken, revealing his chin, and there was blood dripping down his left arm; but overall, he seemed more angry than tired.

Naruto felt his heartbeat speed up, and he had to keep himself from interfering.

In the four weeks they had been living together, Nagato had sometimes talked to Naruto about Konan and two things had become clear very quickly; that he held great respect for her skills and that he admired her very deeply.

Naruto hadn't yet interacted with her enough to know her well, but he realized, from what Nagato had told him, that she wouldn't forgive him if he ruined her plan in an attempt to protect her. So, holding back his natural impulse, he clenched his fists and stood back – choosing to trust her to bring their plan to fruition.

It was the right course of action.

Barely three minutes later, in what looked like one last desperate attempt to beat her opponent, Konan displayed a pair of paper-made wings and flew towards Obito. He stopped her brusquely with a grab to the neck. Konan's wigs broke into hundreds of small squares of paper that launched against him. Obito dismissed the danger they represented – choosing to absorb them with his Mangekyō.

Obito failed to realize in time that most of those paper squares carried a powerful bomb inside them. As he transported them to the Mangekyō dimension, they exploded – hurting him badly. Immediately afterwards, the river upon which he was standing broke into halves and he began falling.

He prepared himself for the weight of the water as the river collapse after him, but there was not water – only sheets upon sheets of explosive paper. There were too many, too many to absorb them all. It was a trap – he realized it now, too late. The whole thing was a trap. The previous fight, Konan's goading, her spiteful words... It was all an act, she herself had acted as a bait to bring him here, to this location. And foolishly, he had fallen for it.

She had killed him.

From his hiding spot, Naruto tracked Obito's every move – knowing that when the time to act finally arrived, he would only have seconds. He saw him fall for Konan's first trap by absorbing the bombs she had hidden in her paper wings, then watched as he fell into the abyss of the river – and knew it was his time to act.

Quick as a flash, Naruto leaped from his hiding spot to replace Konan – who was already nowhere to be seen. He used the Transformation Jutsu to create a clone that would supplant her and hid himself in the shadow of said clone. It took him less than two seconds to do so – two seconds was almost too long.

Half a second later, he sensed Obito appearing behind the clone. Mistaking the clone for Konan, he stabbed the clone in the abdomen with his sword. Sure of his victory, didn't take the sword out, but twisted slowly – as means of prolonging the agony

Naruto didn't feel guilty in the slightest as he emerged from the clone's shadow and hit Obito in the back of the neck with a Rasengan. The force of the impact would've pushed the body forward if not for Naruto wrapping his left arm around Obito's chest and tightly gripping the back of his body against his own – holding it still. Obito's body stiffened, for just a second, and then it became loose.

He had passed out.

Naruto breathed a sigh of relief.

The fight was over - they had won. He had put an extraordinary amount of chakra into that Rasengan and, after receiving a direct hit to the back of his neck, Obito would not wake up – not for a very, very long time.

"You okay?" Naruto asked Konan, who had just joined him.

Undeniably, the fight has taken a severe toll on her and, even now, she looked the worse for wear - but her face was glowing with victory and her features shined with pride. "Tired," she admitted, "—but I'll be fine."

Naruto nodded once, accepting her word.

The sound of an explosion diverted their attention. They both turned their gaze towards the origin of the noise. "Zetsu," Konan identified him.

She was right. Sasuke and Itachi had succeeded in locating the green Akatsuki and were now engaged in battle against him. It was all part of the plan, of course, and Naruto should have been relieved that everything was falling into place so easily. However, the memories from the war were still fresh in his mind, and seeing Sasuke facing Zetsu without him… It felt wrong, somehow. It didn't matter that Itachi was there. Naruto should be there as well.

He itched to join them – but it wasn't his fight. Transporting Obito to a secure cell in the mansion was the first priority. And Konan was already exhausted. If something went wrong along the way, Naruto need to be there with her to handle it.

Obito wasn't heavy. Naruto maneuvered his body until the weight of it rested mostly over his shoulder; then looked at Konan and said, "Let's go."

They run at a slow pace towards the mansion, where Nagato was waiting for them. They were almost out of the river when Naruto's guts twisted in alert. "Dodge!" he yelled at Konan, throwing himself to the ground.

The very next moment a huge sword came slicing through the volume of space he had been occupying just a split second before. Naruto rolled away and stood up again – holding Obito tightly against his back. His gaze went to Konan first – she was standing a few feet away, alive and whole. Only then, his eyes shifted their focus to the intruder.

He did not need to see his face to recognize him, as there was only one man who wielded that sword. "Kisame."

The man gave a slight bow of his head.

"I see you've heard of me… although, perhaps it's not that surprising," his eyes shifted towards the other end of the bridge, where Sasuke and Itachi were still fighting Zetsu, and then, almost reluctantly, it focused on Konan. His gaze was full of distaste as he look at her. "I must say you have surprised me. Madara suspected you had betrayed him, of course, but even he could not imagine they would bring children into your treachery."

Konan wasn't cowed by him. "Considering the man's true intentions, it should rise the question of who, exactly, betrayed whom," she answered back.

Kiasme chuckled, obviously amused by her wits, but then his expression turned serious. "Regardless of that, I'm here to kill you," he said to her, before turning his head to look at Naruto. "You don't have to die yet. Give Madara to me, and you might make another couple of years."

"He's not Madara, he is Obito Uchiha," Naruto replied as he began to make his way to Konan without taking his eyes off the shark-man.

Kisama didn't look impressed by this revelation. "Do you think names have any importance in the ninja word?" He questioned, his voice mocking.

"Perhaps not," Naruto said, finally reaching Konan. "But knowing who we are – or who we are working for – is always important. He's been lying to you, and he's been lied to. But he _is_ a friend of one of my friends, and I won't let you take him away."

He did not care for Kisame's response - who seemed almost amused by his statement. Quickly, Naruto maneuvered Obito's body until he was resting over Konan's back instead of his own; then, he told her, "Take him to Nagato. I will take care of this."

He could see in her eyes that she did not wish to leave but she didn't argue. She nodded, tighten her grip on the unconscious body, turned his back towards them and began running – trusting Naruto to secure her escape.

"You are mistaken if you think I will let you leave," Kisame spoke, leaping from his current location, ready to strike at Konan with Samehada from above. But Naruto leaped as well – blocking off his attack mid-air.

"Foolish kid," Kisame accused him after they landed on the ground mere feet from each other. By the end of their exchange Konan had already covered enough ground that any attack from Kisame couldn't reach her. "Do you honestly think you alone can beat me?"

"I am not alone," Naruto smiled confidently, just before activating the Kurama Mode. Immediately, Naruto's body began to shine in shades of gold, and he called Kurama to his side – eager to fight alongside his friend once again.

This gave Kisame a pause.

"Naruto," Kurama greeted him warmly, before turning his face towards Kisame, "So, this is the fish we have to fry," the fox joked, a glint of maliciousness in his eyes. "Are you sure you need me for this? I was happily sleeping…"

"Nah… I could've taken care of him myself," Naruto assured him, amused. "But it's always more fun fighting alongside my friends, is it not?"

In that precise moment, another figure appeared.

Three pairs of eyes turned to look at him.

Yahiko Pain walked up to Naruto, positioning himself beside him. His clothes were wet, but he looked well. "If that's the case," he addressed Naruto, "It would be my honour fighting alongside both of you."

Naruto smiled at him. "The others?"

"I sent one after Konan and the other is backing up Itachi and Sasuke. Sasuke thought you could use my help here," Pain explained.

Naruto nodded – he would have to thank Sasuke for that, once it was all over. It's not like he couldn't handle Kisame by himself, but as he had previously stated, the company of his friends was always appreciated.

Kisame no longer looked as confident as he had seconds before, but the way he held his body indicated that he was ready to step up to the challenge. And Naruto didn't delude himself, this battle was going to be a challenge.

But they were going to win.

* * *

Fighting Zetsu was nothing like fighting Pain. Zetsu' raw strength and power paled against Pain's; it was the cunning and murderous intent of the first that made him so deadly. Sasuke hated him - which was, perhaps, the reason why he wasn't enjoying this fight as he had the one against Pain.

He felt a deep surge of satisfaction when Itachi finally managed to seal the bastard away for good, which was accompanied by not a small feeling of relief. It had not been an easy fight by any means. They were both sweating profusely. Sasuke was bleeding from an injury in his left shoulder and so was Itachi from his eyes.

His brother had been forced to activate Susanoo much earlier than they had planned to block an attack that would've knocked Sasuke out for a few hours. As he knew very well, the technique was extremely draining of one's chakra and Itachi had been forced to maintain it for almost a quarter of an hour, which had taken a great toll on his eyes.

Sasuke worried about the effects the strain would have on his brother's sight and he was still angry at himself not noticing the attack coming. It was inexcusable. He should've noticed it - he would have too, had Zetsu not pressed all the right buttons to push him over the edge.

Hearing him talk about his family, laughing at the futility of his parents' death, mocking Itachi and taunting Sasuke about how easy it had been to convince his brother of the necessity of their deaths… It made Sasuke furious, to the point where he was blinded with fury. He had dismissed their carefully planned strategy and thrown himself against Zetsu instead, wishing only to shut him up and cause him pain.

Sasuke was ashamed of his outburst now, but at the time, he could not help it - and Itachi had paid for his foolishness.

The red flames of his brother's Susanoo emerging around him - saving him from a definitive blow, showed Sasuke how much he had screwed up. It was a rough awakening. From then on, Sasuke and the two Pains worked together flawlessly, and soon, using the second Pain as bait, they were able to immobilize Zetsu long enough for Itachi to seal him away with the sword of Totsuka.

Now that the heat of the fight had left Sasuke, he wanted to apologise to Itachi for putting them all in danger - and especially, for the damage his brother's eyes had taken protecting him. However, every time he tried to utter an apology the words seemed stuck in his throat. A powerful mix of guilt and anger was still fresh in his mind, consuming everything else, and for some reason, Sasuke couldn't bear to look at his brother.

A heavy silence reigned for the next few seconds, broken only by the far away echo of an explosion. The three of them turned their heads towards the noise - around half a mile north across the river.

"It seems that Naruto is still fighting," the first Pain observed; a hint of preoccupation on his voice.

Sasuke cursed silently. The realisation did nothing to improve his mood.

After Itachi noticed Kisame's chakra clashing against Naruto's, Sasuke sent one of the Yahiko Pan bodies over to him - hoping that they'd be able to overcome Kisame quickly and either killed him or chased him away before their own fight was over. He wanted to spare his brother the pain of facing his old partner in battle, but unfortunately, it was not to be.

"Let's go," he said instead, jumping forward without looking to the others.

It took them a couple of minutes to reach the place of the explosion. Only two figures stood at the edge of the river with several craters in the ground around them. Pain was nowhere in sight.

Immediately, Naruto's gaze locked on Sasuke, and his eyes seemed to have some sort of soothing effect because, upon meeting them, a great weight vanished from the depths of Sasuke's chest and breathing became easier. The echo of Zetsu's taunting words vanished from inside his head.

He noticed then that his brother was standing several feet away from him, looking straight at Kisame. The hybrid fish had sustained several small injuries on his body, and most notably, his hands were empty. He was not wielding Samehada. So, even though Naruto hadn't defeat him yet, he had managed to disarm him.

"I asked Pain to take it back to the Manor, just in case," Naruto told him, as if reading his thoughts.

That explained why Pain wasn't anywhere in sight.

Without his sword, Kisame was just another S-rank criminal – one with an extraordinary amount of chakra, not doubt, but not particularly dangerous. He was completely unmatched, both in strength and number of adversaries – and he was aware of it. Sasuke wondered what he would do about it.

Itachi took another few steps towards his former partner, carefully positioning himself so that they were both staring at each other face to face but, at the same time, keeping a respectable distance.

"You don't have to die," he pronounced seriously, "not here and not today."

The statement caused Kisame to let out a cackling laugh, and then, he proceeded to ignore it. "I always knew where your true loyalties lies, Itachi – Madara had not doubt about it. But I never thought I'd see you return to your brother's side, or that he'd take you back." Kisame's words were indisputably taunting, and yet, the curiosity that shone in his eyes was real.

"Life has a way of surprising you," Itachi answered cryptically, choosing not to address the implicit question.

This seemed to amuse his old partner, who chuckled again. Afterwards, his gaze turned reflective. "You know, since your defection became clear, I've been thinking a lot of what you said, that one time," he said after a few seconds.

Itachi didn't need any more explanation to guess correctly to what time he was referring. "I was wrong," he said, surprising Kisame. Itachi rarely owned up to a mistake - not because he was too prideful to do so, but because he rarely err.

"Oh?"

"I was but a boy when I said that," he admitted it not without some difficulty. "The death of my father affected me very deeply. I resented him for years for putting me in the position of having to choose between my clan and my village. I begrudged his pride and ambition and I was sure that, when the time came, he would be my main and most dangerous opponent – since like myself, he too had awaken the Mangekyō Sharingan."

After a pause, Itachi went on."I was mistaken by thinking so," he admitted. "My father threw away my notions of him when he chose to surrender his life rather than fighting his son to the death. And by doing so, he showed me how terribly I had misjudged his character."

Sasuke listened intently to Itachi and - by seeing his brother struggling to pronounce this confession - he was reminded once more that it took an unmeasurable effort on Itachi's part to discuss his feelings openly. He had never spoken to Sasuke about that night in this manner. He explained his actions and the reasoning that had spurred them, but he made no reference to the conflicting emotions he ought to have been feeling back then, or the way he was still affected by his choice now.

Sasuke was only aware of the tremendous agony his brother had experienced when he carried out his parents' execution because he had seen the memories of that night from Itachi's point of view. And yet, hearing the words now – it felt different, somehow.

It was impossible to listen to Itachi now and not to hear the gut wrenching heartbreak in his voice. It was impossible to look upon him and to miss the guilt on his eyes or the pain that clouded his features. It literally hurt Sasuke to see Itachi hurting. And if there was a small, buried part of him that had been holding on to the anger and resentment awaken by Zetsu's malicious mocking and accusations, upon seeing Itachi like this, those dark feelings quickly crumble to dust and flowed away.

Itachi was but a victim of what had happened, just like he himself was – and as for Sasuke, all was forgiven.

Kisame as well seemed to give Itachi's words serious consideration.

"I respect you, Itachi, you know I do," he spoke at last. "You are the most honest liar and the most kind-hearted killer I have ever met. But you are fucked up – all of us are. What Madara… or whatever his name is, offers… That it's worth living and dying for."

"You are willing to give up your life for a world of lies?" Itachi questioned with a frown. His features showed that he disapproved of this notion, but held little hope of changing his friend's mind.

"I'm willing to surrender myself in order to bring one last lie to life," Kisame answered smoothly. "A beautiful lie that will end all others." Those points of view were irreconcilable by nature, and sadly, nothing else remained to be said.

The two men regarded each other in silence as several seconds ticked by. It was hard to guess what was going on in their minds, but Sasuke suspected that, in their own peculiar way, they were bidding farewell to each other. When they finally moved, it happened so fast that he did barely miss it.

Unbeknown to them, Kisame had been accumulating all his chakra on one point of his body and turning it into an explosive substance. When it became clear that he intended to blow himself up and them along with him, there was but half a second to spare.

Sasuke panicked-

But Itachi was quicker, "Amaterasu!"

Black flames emerged on Kisame's body wrapping themselves around him. Kisame screamed, and it was a most terrible sound to be heard, but it lasted not more than a few seconds. Then everything around them became quiet - only the breathing of the flames could be heard.

Sasuke looked away - the smell of burn meat making of him sick to his stomach. But Itachi did not. He watched as the flames ate away the body of his old comrade until only ashes were left.

Sasuke's heart broke for his brother and, in that instant, he understood that no one could ever punish Itachi more than he punished himself. He wanted to comfort his brother with all his heart but didn't know how to go about it - or if any attempt to do so would be welcome. Unconsciously, Sasuke eyes turned to Naruto for counsel, since he was the more proficient of the two in dealing with emotions - but Naruto too was at lost.

Unsure about how to proceed but refusing to stand still, while his brother suffered so, Sasuke began making his way to him.

Should Sasuke hug him? They had only hugged in two occasions before and they both were overwhelmed by emotions when it happened. Hugging Itachi now seem wrong, somehow. Besides, Sasuke was afraid Itachi would take it as an admission of weakness. And it would be awkward.

Sasuke had almost reached Itachi' side and he still what unsure of what to do. If hugging him was out of the question, asking his brother if he was okay seemed not just stupid but also cruel. And any words of absolution would fall on deaf ears. This left him almost out of options.

Finally reaching his side, Sasuke hesitated for another moment and then, very self-consciously, put his right hand in Itachi' shoulder and tighten his grip. To Sasuke it felt like a very insufficient gesture, and he despised himself in that moment for his inability to manoeuvre human emotions, but miraculously Itachi seemed to take some comfort from it, because his muscles lost some of the previous stiffness his body relax a little.

"Come on," Sasuke commanded, not letting go of his grip on Itachi's shoulder quite yet. "We need to get back to the mansion."

Given his mood, it was fortunate that nobody contradicted him.

* * *

The walk back to the mansion was quiet and full of tension, and Sasuke was relieved when they finally reached the manor. Upon entering, Yahiko Pain left the group and disappeared down one of the narrower hallways without even saying goodbye, which made Sasuke sarcastically wonder if he was going back to the storage room with the rest of the bodies. Wisely, he kept the thought to himself.

In silent mutual agreement, Sasuke, Itachi and Naruto began to make their way to the library.

Nagato and Konan were already there, waiting for them at the table —and she looked worse for the wear. The three of them sat down at their usual places. They all glanced at each other but no one spoke. The mood around the table was sombre for having achieved their first victory.

After a few seconds of awkward silence, Naruto was the first one to speak, "How is Obito?" He asked Nagato.

"Unconscious," his cousin replied readily. "None of his injuries were life threatening, so I put him in a cell downstairs. My Petah Path is with him and will prevent him from regaining consciousness by absorbing his chakra, but we must decide what to do with him."

"Let us wait for tomorrow before making any decision," Itachi suggested, surprising Sasuke. His brother wasn't one to delay uncomfortable tasks.

"I agree," Konan said immediately.

Shaking off the shock, Sasuke agreed with his brother's suggestion as well. Since neither Naruto nor Nagato argue against it, it was decided: Obito's fate would be determined in the morning. With little else to discuss, Nagato and Konan excused themselves soon afterwards. She was limping, favouring his left leg over the right one, but even more telling was the fact that she was walking next to Nagato instead of pushing his wheelchair from behind.

Obito had really made a number of her.

Naruto glanced at the brothers and he stood up to leave as well, saying to Sasuke with a pointed look, "I'll see you later."

Sasuke nodded at him, grateful to be left alone with his brother – since he doubted very much that Itachi would open up to him with someone else in the room. He looked up at his brother and searched desperately for the right thing to say. Sasuke wanted to make him feel better about what had happened, or at the very least, to remind Itachi that he wasn't alone, that he could always count on Sasuke.

Unfortunately, Itachi spoke before he could, rejecting this comfort before it was offered. "I'm fine, Sasuke," he stated. "You don't need to worry about me."

In that moment, Sasuke came very close to call him out on his bullshit.

It was obvious to anyone with two eyes that Itachi was _not_ fine. He opened his mouth to tell him so in very clear terms, but at the last second, he closed it again – unable to push his brother's boundaries. Hurt and upset, Sasuke watched powerlessly as his brother left the library and, no matter how much he wished to, he didn't speak up to stop him.

Feeling defeated and angry at himself, Sasuke began making his way to his room as well.

Once there, he sat down in the bed, not caring at all if the sheets were soiled by his dirty clothes. He didn't even want to put up the effort of taking them off. His fists closed around the sheets as his mind was filled by silent recriminations, some directed at Itachi but most of them directed at Sasuke himself. "Fuck!" He cursed.

He stood up, walked to the wall and punched several times. "Fuck!" Punch. "Fuck!" Punch. The pain on his knuckles finally registered in his brain and, strangely, it made him feel a lot better. Pain for him, had always been a useful distraction from self-recrimination.

Sasuke was considering if he should keep punching the wall or perhaps find some of Nagato's boy-toys to let out some adrenaline, when Naruto entered his room.

He disliked what he saw, obviously.

"Shit!" He cursed. He ran up to Sasuke, snatched his hand before he could hit the wall again and there was so much fury on his eyes. For a moment, as he looked at him, Sasuke was reminded of the power of his raikiri by the blue of his eyes. "Sasuke, what the fuck?" His voice was suffused with a large dollop of accusatory anger.

It wasn't the question but the weight of his gaze which made Sasuke recoil and inadvertently take a step backward. It didn't stop Naruto from reaching for his hand again. "You're bleeding," he said after a moment, not looking at his hands but at his left shoulder, where Zetsu had managed to stab him.

All the anger had vanished from Naruto's expression. He no longer looked upset, only concerned. In that moment, Itachi's words echoed in Sasuke's head…

' _Naruto is in love with you._ '

…but immediately, he shook them off.

It was not the time nor the place to think about it.

"It was one of Zetsu's branches," he explained to Naruto, anticipating his question. "He was a real bastard and managed to distract me long enough to almost kill me. Itachi saved my life."

Naruto narrowed his eyes, obviously upset by this new information, but startlingly, he did not to comment on it. "You need a shower," he said instead, pushing Sasuke towards the bathroom door. "And food. I'll go get you some food while you shower, and then I'll have a look at that wound. Now, bastard." Naruto left no place for discussion. Sasuke thought about arguing anyway, just to be contrary, but Naruto's instructions made sense, and at least they had taken his mind off other matters.

Slowly, he walked into the bathroom and began to undress. Naruto waited outside until he heard the noise of the water running, and then he left – presumably to retrieve some food from the kitchens. Sasuke's stomach growled hungrily at the thought of food, and he realized with surprise that he hadn't eating anything since early that morning. Perhaps Naruto's idea had some merit, after all.

After a few minutes, he turned off the water and walked out of the shower. To his consternation, Sasuke noticed that his shoulder was still bleeding. He cursed and ignored it. He quickly dried the water from his body with a towel, and then tied the towel around his waist before walking back to his room. Once there, he looked for his pyjamas and put his pants on.

Sasuke's hair was still wet but his injury was persistently bleeding and that was more urgent. He had lost a lot of blood, he realised. The wound had been bleeding for at least two hours. Frowning, he used the towel to put some pressure on his injured shoulder. Then, Sasuke sat down in the bed to wait for Naruto.

He didn't have to wait long.

Naruto came back four minutes later carrying a food tray in his hands. It smelled good – or perhaps Sasuke was simply very hungry. Naruto left the tray in the table at the corner, and Sasuke recognized two the chicken rolls the housekeeper had left in the fridge the day before. It was better than ramen, at least.

Naruto walked up to Sasuke then, until he was standing a few inches away from him. "Let me see that," he demanded, gesturing to his injured shoulder.

Too exhausted to fight him right now, Sasuke did as he asked and put the towel down, revealing his injury to Naruto. "There, you see. No big deal," he said – but Naruto wasn't listening anyway.

It was a gaping wound. Naruto's heart skipped a beat at the sight of it, and then, tenderly, he raised his left hand and brought it close to the skin of Sasuke's shoulder. He avoided touching the injured flesh but the tip of his fingers caressed the surrounding skin very tenderly. Sasuke inhaled in surprise at the touch and the hairs on his back bristle up.

Naruto noticed this reaction and immediately took his fingers away. "I'm sorry," he apologized, lowering his eyes for a moment.

Sasuke shook his head, dismissing this apology. He wasn't sure what he should say or if he should say anything at all, but the touch of Naruto's fingers hadn't been unpleasant at all – on the contrary. It had actually felt… very nice.

Feeling slightly light-headed, Sasuke lifted his eyes to look at his friend. Sitting down on the edge of the mattress as he was, Naruto's height towered over Sasuke by a lot, and yet, strangely, it didn't make him feel at a disadvantage. If it were anyone else… he wouldn't stand it. He would feel threaten or at the very least caged by such closeness.

But it wasn't anyone else; it was _Naruto_.

Sasuke would never feel threatened by Naruto.

Naruto might have misunderstood Sasuke's silent scrutiny of him, because he excused himself and practically ran to the bathroom. Sasuke heard him opening a few drawls, and moments later he came back again, carrying a set of antiseptic and bandages. This time, Naruto sat down in the mattress next to him, leaving some space between them.

"I'll have this clean in a minute," he said, opening the antiseptic before pouring it profusely over the wound. "It's a pity Sakura is not here. She'd have you patch up in a three seconds." Sasuke offered him a vague grumble as he shrugged. He did not want to talk about Sakura and he absolutely did not wish she was here. "Don't move your shoulder!" Naruto chastised him in response.

Sasuke rolled his eyes but did as he said, and waited patiently while Naruto took care of his injury – not really listening to his friend's babbling. Sasuke's mind was full of questions. Was Naruto babbling because he was nervous? Was Sasuke's proximity responsible for making him nervous? Had this happened before?

Thinking about it now, Sasuke recalled a few occasions.

After the war, after they moved in together, sometimes - when Sasuke came out of the shower with only a towel around his waist or when he went straight to the kitchen after waking up, his hair still tangled from sleep, Naruto would become flustered and began mumbling about stuff. Sasuke didn't mind – he didn't pay a lot of attention to his friend's words, but he found the sound of his voice oddly soothing, so he didn't complain.

Was Naruto already in love with him, even that far back?

Even more important. If Itachi hadn't told him, would Sasuke had noticed _something_ eventually?

Unconsciously, Sasuke shifted his body until their legs were touching and there was almost no space between them. This shut Naruto up. The blond inhaled in surprise and stopped babbling. Sasuke smiled, triumphant. His head felt heavy but the touch of Naruto's hand as he arranged the bandages on his shoulder felt nice…

Suddenly, Naruto stopped. His gaze was searching as he held Sasuke's face between his hands. What was he going to do? Naruto wasn't going to… kiss him, right?

If Naruto was going to kiss him, Sasuke didn't know how he felt about it. He wasn't repulsed by the idea. In fact, he felt slightly curious. But did he really want him to?

"Sasuke," Naruto's voice came to him from afar, distracting him from his wayward thoughts. "How much blood have you lost?"

Sasuke thought about it and then shrugged. "A lot."

It was his own fault. Sasuke should've stopped the flowing of blood immediately after being stabbed, but he had been too pissed off at the moment to think rationally. And then, after Zetsu died, he had been too busy worrying about Itachi and too angry at himself for his inability to help his brother. He had been bleeding for a couple hours...

Which was probably why he felt so dizzy right now.

"Come on," Naruto commanded, standing up. "I finished wrapping it and it no longer bleeds. You need to eat something and then sleep. You'll feel fine in the morning."

Naruto guided him to the table and sat down next to him. He poured some water in two glasses as well, and offered Sasuke one of them. They took a wrap each and began eating in silence. The chicken tasted nicely, and by the end of the meal, Sasuke felt a bit better.

"Thank you," he said to his friend, meaning it.

Naruto, who was busy putting everything back in the tray, stopped for a moment and smiled brightly at him. He finished tidying up rather quickly after that. He grabbed the empty tray and all the cutlery to take it back to the kitchen and was already walking through the door when he turned his head for a moment and looked at him.

"Good night, Sasuke. Sleep well," he wished him.

Already in bed, Sasuke smiled into his pillow. "Goodnight, Naruto."

* * *

 _I hope you all enjoyed it and that the chapter was up to my usual standars. I must confess that I lost some of inspirtation for this story. My working hours as a teacher have made it impossible for me to write consistently for the last 6 months and when I had the chance to do so, I was rather taken with other fandoms, ie, Captain America and Stucky, mostly._

 _Nevetheless two thirds of the stroy are already writen and now the most interesting part of the story begins, the actual paring, so i will try my best to finish it properly. Hopefully as I get back into the habit of writing it my enthisiasm for it will return._

 _I hope you all enjoyed it and that the chapter was up to my usual standars. I must confess that I lost some of inspirtation for this story. My working hours as a teacher have made it impossible for me to write consistently for the last 6 months and when I had the chance to do so, I was rather taken with other fandoms, ie, Captain America and Stucky, mostly._

Nevetheless two thirds of the stroy are already writen and now the most interesting part of the story begins, the actual paring, so i will try my best to finish it properly. Hopefully as I get back into the habit of writing it my enthisiasm for it will return.


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